Love by the Law
by ImpactRive
Summary: Fudge,seeing an increase in births,introduces a marriage law requiring all girls at Hogwarts to marry.Will Snape and his new wife be able to set aside their differences and start a friendship? First story in series of four. Starts at second year at school
1. 12 01

**Love by the Law**

Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic for the third time running, looked with squinted eyes at the chart in front of him. He sighed deeply and placed it back on his overloaded work desk. He closed his eyes. In all his years as minister he never once had to deal with anything like this.

He glanced back at the chart. Cornelius had received it this morning per owl mail from St. Mungus, the magical hospital. It was data about births in recent years. They seem to have gone up by at least 250 % compared to the current first years about to go to Hogwarts, and it was up to Fudge to do something about it. If not, Hogwarts would be overfilled for decades to come, and, most importantly, they'd make him resign for reason of incompetence.

There was only one solution to this problem: To pass a new law concerning marriage. It sounded simple, but he knew that many people would be against it. Furthermore, if he went too far people would not be in his favor in the next election, and if he didn't go far enough, people, also, would be opposing him. If he didn't do anything at all he shouldn't even campaign. So what was he to do?

Cornelius thought about the limits. How far could he push them? Then he thought about that there were more man who'd vote in the coming election than women, so turning the law in a way that would please them would be in his intention, as well. What did men nowadays want? Young, healthy women to breed with and to cook for them.

The minister's thoughts turned to Hogwarts. There were enough young, healthy girls there, but they were too young to be married, and then he'd have all parents against him, too. No, he had to stay away from Hogwarts. Unless he found a suitable solution to keep the parents on his side…

In Hogwarts, there were probably enough girls for a quarter of the male population, or a fifth. Depending if Death Eaters and squibs should be accounted for. He decided yes. Still, there was the problem of concerned parents.

Cornelius stood up and started pacing about his office.

The door opened and his assistant Wilfred entered, worried.

"I heard you pacing," he said. "Something on your mind?"

"The increase in births," Fudge sighed, standing still. He mustered his assistant, a capable man of thirty-three. He had daughters, Fudge knew.

"A marriage law seems appropriate," Wilfred shrugged.

Angry, Fudge snapped, "I have thought about that too, you dimwit!"

Wilfred wasn't very impressed by the insult. It came almost every day, along with some others too. Instead, he looked quietly at the minister who, he knew, was already making a plan in his head.

Moodily, Cornelius sat back down on his chair and placed his left elbow on the arm rest and his left index and middle finger on his temple and leaned on them, while his thump gave support on his jaw bone. With his right fingers he tapped on the table top, impatiently. What other choice did he have except Hogwarts?

"Say," he said to Wilfred, without looking up. "You have two daughters, haven't you?"

Wilfred nodded. "Anna, six, and Emily, almost three."

Fudge continued after a moment of thought. "If they were in Hogwarts now… are you imagining they are?"

Wilfred nodded obediently. "Yes."

"Good." Fudge sat upright. "Think they are in Hogwarts… what would you say if I passed a marriage law requiring all girls in Hogwarts to be married off? What would you think?"

Wilfred paled visibly. "I'd ask myself if you had gone insane, Minister."

"What if I said it's for the good of the nation?"

Wilfred shook his head. "Even I wouldn't be too convinced."

"Would you have any worries?" Fudge cut in.

"With whom they'd end up with." Wilfred rested his head on his shoulder, looking sideways at Fudge. "And what would happen there to them."

Fudge nodded. "What if I told you that you had a say in whom they'd end up with? And what if there was a potion or a charm preventing them from being beaten and sexually assaulted?"

Wilfred winced. "It does ease my mind in the slightest, but I would still object. I'm sorry, Minister."

Fudge waved his hand dismissively. "Don't be," he sighed. "If it wouldn't be for you, I'd have passed a thousand-and-one crazy, and insane, and mad laws in the last ten years."

"A thousand-and-two now," Wilfred smiled.

Fudge looked at him. "I'm not done with that marriage law, yet," he said shaking his head. He waved his hand again.

As Wilfred left, he frowned.

* * *

"Quiet!" Albus Dumbledore said, stilling the muttering going through his office with a wave of his old, wrinkly hand. The headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry looked around his office, and even along the paintings framing his office walls. Everyone was fidgety and angry.

"Fudge can't do this!" Molly Weasley, mother of seven and wife to Arthur Weasley, exclaimed in rage. "Marry off eleven year old girls. Who knows with what perverts they'll end up with!"

Albus raised his hand again and she quietened down.

"I believe I don't have to tell anyone about the marriage law passed by Fudge this morning," he said softly. Again everyone started to rumor, but a third raise of his hand let everyone become quiet instantly.

"I haven't let the Order come together for nothing," he said with a twinkle in his eyes.

Severus Snape, potion master and teacher at Hogwarts, sneered loudly. "Which student will you get yourself?" he snapped. "Maybe Chang, she's young and pretty. Or how about Granger, annoying know-it-all? Wait, isn't the Weasley girl starting this year? I do think she'd be a good catch." He didn't mind that Molly slapped him scornfully.

Albus stayed quiet. In the past he had hit it off with young students, yes, but not anymore.

He cleared his throat and everyone looked at him. "I was hoping some of the male members would volunteer to petition for some of the girls, foremost Gryffindor and Ravenclaw as the Death Eaters will try to get them." Everyone looked at Snape, former Death Eater. No one said anything though.

Dumbledore continued. "Who'd volunteer?" He looked around.

"Me," a pale and exhausted looking man said stepping forward.

An African man did the same, closely followed by the two oldest Weasley boys.

"Remus, Kingsley, Bill and Charlie. Anyone else?" Albus asked, looking at Snape.

Severus grunted unwillingly. "Fine!" he finally snapped. It always tormented him when the headmaster stared at him like that. "Fine…"

"I could divorce Molly to save another girl," Arthur suggested.

Dumbledore nodded thankfully. "I have talked with Fudge per owl," he reported once finished writing down the names. "Each girl and her parents will meet the husband in my office, and then the marriage papers will be signed."

"What if the parents don't agree with the husband?" Molly voiced her thoughts. She wasn't too happy with Arthur's choice, of course. Furthermore she was worried about her youngest daughter who'd start Hogwarts this year.

"Then they get a list of all the other men who petitioned for their daughter and then they can decide whether or not they still want her to marry the present men," Albus answered.

With that the meeting was adjourned.

Molly came to his desk.

"Yes," Albus said before she spoke. "I will make sure that Ginevra gets a decent husband."

* * *

Harry Potter, the famous Boy-Who-Lived, grimaced as one of his best friends, Hermione Granger, opened the slide door to the compartment. "I'm so sorry," he said as she sat down. He had spent the last couple of days at his friend's Ron's house, and had thus heard about the marriage law. Normally he lived with his aunt and uncle who despised anything to do with magic, but Ron and his brothers Fred and George had rescued him from there.

Hermione shrugged and waved to a red headed girl, Ron's little sister Ginevra. At the moment she took it a bit lighthearted. "Would have gotten married sooner or later," she said. Secretly, however, she was slightly nervous. Though, of course, she'd never tell anyone.

"Must be hard," even Ronald Weasley admitted. He was the second youngest of seven children. "I mean, they could marry you to anyone, even Snape! And I mean, you're only, like, twelve years old."

"Nearly thirteen," she corrected him. "Eight more days." She pulled a book out of her trunk and began to read. Harry and Ron shrugged.

"At least, Mum was shook up about Ginny having to marry," Ron said. Next to him the girl shuddered.

Like the year before the train ride to Hogwarts took ages. When they did finally arrive it was pitch black and you could hardly see anything. A nervous Ginevra Weasley made her way over to Rubeus Hagrid, a half giant and the groundskeeper, who was waving a lantern about and called, "First years! First years!"

Harry, Hermione and Ron on the other hand joined up with a shy and forgetful Neville Longbottom, a boy in their year. Together the four of them made their way to horseless carriages, like the other students. They got into one of the last ones, somewhat embarrassed as they had never done this before.

"You must be quite worried," Neville said halfway to the actual castle. He obviously meant Hermione. "But my grandma said Dumbledore would never let you fall into the hands of a Death Eater." He tried to smile encouragingly, but it looked rather ill instead.

Hermione shuddered.

"I'm sorry," Neville instantly apologised. Seeing Ron's look he immediately shut up.

"I am actually surprised at the number of girls that showed up," Harry voiced his thoughts.

Hermione shook her head and her curls flew about like acrobats in a circus. "I see you haven't read the prophet. Every girl on the register of Hogwarts from the last year and the new first years added together are to be married, so there is no actual point of not going unless you want to spend time with your husband."

Harry nodded in agreement.

"I see," Ron added.

The carriage rumbled and shook the students through, then it came to a halt. The students exited and made their way to the Great Hall.

"Hey Granger!" came Draco Malfoy's voice through the crowd. "Guess what? My father divorced my mother and petitioned for your cute little ass!" Malfoy was a Slytherin and the son of a former Death Eater.

Hermione started to turn sickly green, as if she was going to throw up.

"Don't listen to him," Harry said quickly shoving her into the hall to get away from the Slytherin.

* * *

Severus was still angry about Dumbledore. He had never intended to marry anyone except Lily Evans, the girl of his dreams, but she had ended up dead so marriage had been out of his mind forever.

He sighed, and looked down from the Head Table to look at the students filling into the hall. His eyes fell on the girls, each and everyone walking around nervous and fidgety, as if they had all been raped on the train ride. And somehow they had. They had been raped off their freedom to marry at an appropriate time in their life with whoever they want.

Just outside the hall he heard Draco shout something, but he couldn't make out what. He guessed the moment Potter shoved a sick looking Granger in. Although she was annoying he pitied her, yet he also knew that Dumbledore would never let her end up with Lucius Malfoy.

Severus didn't even know who Albus had petitioned for him. After taking all the names he had vanished to the ministry without telling anyone who would get which girl hopefully. He didn't really care to be honest. After all it'd be for a few years only, at the most, and then they'd get a divorce and he'd be single again, or if the stupid law still existed, Dumbledore would probably ask him to petition again.

He sighed as the hall fell silent. He always found it a big waste of time to sit in, in the sorting ceremony. It was just listening to a poem an old hat took a whole year to make and then watch forty-odd kids put the afore mentioned hat on, who would then yell out their house. A waste of time. This year however he paid careful attention to the girls, those sorted into Gryffindor and Ravenclaw. After all one of them might be his future wife.

The Weasley girl was sorted into Gryffindor. Her mother would behead him if he had to marry her. Then there were another couple of uninteresting girls who'd probably wet themselves whenever they came near him. The same for Ravenclaw, unfortunately. The only girl who stood out was someone called Luna Lovegood, who, on her way to the Ravencalw table, sadly waved at Ginny. Severus prophesied many out of school meetings with her for himself.

Then Dumbledore stood, once Minerva McGonnagal, transfiguration teacher, returned to her seat next to Severus and the Headmaster. Like always Severus only half listened. Only at the part concerning the marriages did he pike up.

"… In the coming months the girls who have been petitioned for, and who are to be married this year, will be called to my office," Dumbledore started the new topic. Many of the girls started wincing and hugging each other. Others just stared blankly at their plates looking like they will throw up the minute their names are called. "There everything will be sorted out and you'll hopefully leave again a married wife." Some of the older boys snorted at the "hopeful". Dumbledore ignored it.

"Some of the teachers in this school have petitioned," he continued instead, knowingly looking across the Head Table. "Those girls who will be married to a professor will remain in their dorms, but will also get a room in the concerned teacher's quarters if they should wish to remain there." After talking to the Order Albus had also had a final word with all male teachers.

"Lastly but not leastly," the headmaster said, quirking form the corner of his mouth, "May I welcome our new DADA teacher, Mr. Gilderoy Lockhart!"

Few girls showered him with charming looks, hoping he'd be their husband. He seemed to ignore that most females in the room looked too sick to even acknowledge him and stood up, grandly bowing five times and blowing kisses to no one in particular.

Severus snorted. Why had Albus even hired that liar and pervert? It was a mystery to him. Lucky for the girls they couldn't be forced upon, but most of them would probably be stupid enough to let him into her pants once and then again and again. Just like charming ol' headmaster Dumbledore.

He didn't notice that everyone had started to eat until Minerva nudged him. It wasn't like him to daydream. This whole marriage law already started to ruin his reputation, and it hadn't even fully started.


	2. 13 01

**Love by the Law**

A/N: I have read the reviews, and there are a couple of things I'd like to point out:

1. Just because they are married at such a young age doesn't mean that they will have intimate relations at that same age. Fudge set the marriage law in place to _prevent _too many children being born. In fact, as mentioned in the first chapter, a charm will be placed on them so that no one can force themselves on them.

2. To me Dumbledore always seemed to have a bit of an adulterate side, and what Severus said about Ginny and Hermione were just accusations rather than the actual truth (that he'd go for girls that young).

3. The fact that I didn't include the boys who are under age as well is because they are just that, under age. Older men are maturer and not teens any more; they don't "experiment" with girls. They know about the charm and will need to learn to accept it.

4. About Arthur divorcing Molly: Molly, as mentioned, is not happy about it. However, to Arthur it is equally important to be able to keep another girl away from possible marriages to Death Eaters or sex-lusting men until she is seventeen.

5. After Fudge resigns in the summer of '95 and Scrimgeour takes over (the second story of the series), Scrimgeour lifts the marriage law and all couples are forced to divorce, so in fact the actual marriage law is only intact until the end of the trio's fifth year (and the end of this story, approximately 20-25 chapters).

Thank you for reading these points.

-ImpactRive

* * *

From day one of school girls started to get called into Dumbledore's office on almost a daily basis. He didn't like seeing his female students get married off so rapidly, but the ministry had insisted on it.

"Better get it over and done with," had Fudge advised the Headmaster. He could talk. He didn't have to restrain angry fathers and comfort weeping mothers and daughters every day. Luckily the minister had ordered some sort of organization in the signing of the certificates, so Albus had decided to go after age and bloodline. First the oldest pure bloods, then after the youngest the oldest half bloods and after the youngest the oldest muggle born. It didn't take long for it to be Ginevra Weasley's turn.

Molly sniffed, at least reassured at the sight of Kingsley Shacklebolt, as she entered the headmaster's office with Arthur following her closely. Both hugged their daughter tightly.

Albus, like a hundred times before, told the Weasleys Ginny's rights.

"Ms. Weasley can divorce Mr. Shacklebolt once she is of age. Until then a charm will be placed upon her so that he cannot touch her inappropriately unless she wishes so."

Molly glared at Ginny.

Albus pushed a piece of parchment and a quill towards the adults and the girl. With a shaking hand Molly and Arthur signed, then the African man and lastly the pale Ginny. Her mother hugged her again.

"Good day, Mrs. Shacklebolt," Albus smiled as she, like a zombie, left his office. Then he became serious.

"She's the second girl to be married off to the Order."

"Who came before her?" Arthur asked shaking Kingsley's hand in thankfulness.

"Cho Chang, to Remus," Albus asked taking his half moon glasses off. He rubbed his eyes. "Next will be Luna Lovegood to you, Arthur, so you might as well just stay here. Next week Mad Eye will get Katie Bell. In the subsequent month Bill and Charlie will be married to the twins Padma and Parvati Patil and lastly Hermione Granger."

Arthur laughed grimly. "You make it sound like fun, marrying your students off like this."

Molly paled. There was only one volunteer left. "You can't do that!" she exclaimed.

Albus looked at her, knowing exactly what she meant. "It was either him or Lucius Malfoy, Molly."

"Let the poor girl marry Arthur," Molly however insisted.

Dumbledore stubbornly shook his head. "No, I decided it this way and it will happen this way."

Moodily Molly, after thanking Kingsley, left.

The remaining men looked at Dumbledore.

"When will you tell Hermione?" Kingsley asked, not in any way objecting the headmaster's decision. He knew from experience that no one knew better than him.

"When it's her time," Albus simply answered, putting his glasses back on.

The fire lit green and an elderly man came out. "Lovegood," he greeted the men, shaking each ones' hand. "Which one of you is to be my new son-in-law?"

Kinsgley vanished out of Albus's office.

Lovegood nodded thankfully at Arthur, his distant neighbour. "I appreciate what you're doing for Luna."

"Always," Arthur smiled as the door opened and a pale, blonde girl with carrot earrings entered. She wore Ravenclaw uniform.

Albus smiled at her. "Luna," he said, gesturing at Arthur. "This is Arthur Weasley, your new husband."

Luna smiled at him. "I'm friends with your daughter Ginny," she said.

* * *

It was three months into the year and Hermione still was not married. She wasn't sure whether she should be afraid or happy. After all she only knew about Malfoy Sr. petitioning for her. But then she remembered Neville's words: Dumbledore will never let her end up with a Death Eater. That somewhat calmed her down.

Harry and Ron were happy that Hermione was still not married. They feared that her new husband would pull her out of school and away from them.

One day in transfiguration, early January, a house elf apparated right in front of McGonnagal who sighed deeply, taking the letter from it. Most of the girls in this particular class were already with a partner, and not many were left.

The students followed her shaking hands as they tore the envelope open. She closed her eyes, said a little prayer and then read the letter. She looked up and all the students held their breaths in anticipation.

"Hermione Granger," she let the bomb fall.

Hermione swallowed, then collected her things and loaded them into her bag. She slowly left the classroom.

"Hermione Malfoy!" one of the Slytherins shouted after her, snickering. Once the door closed behind her she burst out in tears. She didn't want to marry Malfoy's father. All the way to Dumbledore's office she did nothing but blubber violently.

In front of the gargoyles stood her parents and she yelped in surprise as her father scooted her up.

"Oh my Minnie," he breathed into her ear holding her close. "Minnie, oh Minnie! Please don't cry, Minnie."

Her mother joined the hug. "We tried to argue with your headmaster, but he wouldn't let go. Oh, we wanted to pull you out but he said it won't do anything because you went here last year and your name is on the register and on the list of the girls who have to marry."

"Oh Minnie," her father sighed. "Why is this world so gruesome? If we had known we'd never had let you go in the first place. He let her down and Hermione wiped her tears. At least her parents were here.

"I'm glad you're here, Mum, Dad," she whispered. They both gave her empathetic looks and her father said the password. The gargoyles parted and brought a grand staircase into view. Silently the Grangers went up, Hermione still sniffing.

Her mother opened the door to Dumbledore's office, and to Hermione's luck there stood no Lucius Malfoy. To her surprise she saw one of her teachers.

Hermione paled visibly, stopping to weep. "Professor Snape," was all she could say. His sight left her wordless.

"For once the know-it-all is quiet," Snape muttered under his breath.

"Professor Dumbledore!" Mr. Granger exclaimed. "This- This must be a misunderstanding! That man can't be Minnie's husband!"

Snape raised his eyebrows at the nickname and Hermione, furiously wiping her eyes, just glared at him.

Albus gave a letter to her dad.

"See for yourself, Mr. Granger."

_To: Albus Dumbledore_

_Ref.: Marriage 487_

_S.N.: Hermione Granger_

_Year: 2_

_BldLn: Muggleborn_

_Petns.: Lucius Malfoy, Severus Snape_

_Chsn: Severus Snape_

_From: Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic_

_Signed: Wilfred Owen, Assistant of Mntr. Fudge_

Hermione pleadingly looked at her mum as her dad started to uncontrollably shout at the headmaster and potions master. She shrugged, as if saying "You're the witch here, not me. You figure something out."

Hermione sighed. She'd never have thought she needed to jinx her father about anything, but this needed to be done. She pointed her wand at him and whispered, "Petrificus Totalus!" A moment later he fell on the ground, still conscious but unable to move.

Her mum smiled at her as if saying, "You need to show me how to do that later." Then to Dumbledore she said, "Who is that Lucius Malfoy?"

"A bad man," Hermione instantaneously said, remembering to have met him at Flourish & Botts while book shopping in the summer holidays.

She looked at her. "So you want to marry this man?" She gestured at Snape.

Hermione shrugged. "If I have no other choice but to marry Malfoy, then yes." She shuddered at the mention of his name.

Albus nodded, thankful for this to get over quickly. After saying Hermione's rights he gave Mrs. Granger a ballpoint pen and she signed the certificate, then Snape followed with a quill and Hermione finished, at the same time admiring his cursive handwriting. She herself scribbled her name hastily on the paper.

Albus looked at his clock, seeing there were still twenty minutes of the transfiguration class left over. He suggested that Severus show Hermione his quarters and her bedroom. After Mrs. Granger hugged Hermione a final time she left with her new husband.

Until they reached the staircase leading to the dungeons they both stayed quiet. However, on the first step Hermione stood still and Snape gave her an impatient look.

"What is it, Gr- Hermione?"

She looked blankly at him. "I'm not expected to… you know…"

He had a hard time not to smile about how embarrassed she was to ask. "No, you're not. All you're expected to do is to divorce me once you're of age and find a husband your own age and then marry him and have a dozen little buggers who I will be unfortunate enough to teach." He continued walking and heard her footsteps follow.

"What if –," she started again.

"What if what?" he snapped impatiently.

She looked at him, not sure how to ask. "What if I fall in love with you?"

This time he didn't want to smile the least. "You'll never fall in love with me," he said harshly. "Like I said, you'll divorce me, find a husband worth of you and have little buggers."

Hermione jogged to keep up with him. "What if I do fall in love with you and what if I don't want to divorce you?"

Severus whirled around and grabbed her by the shoulder. "You. Will. Not. Fall. In. Love. With. Me. Understood?"

* * *

"I wonder where Hermione is," Harry remarked noticing that she hadn't come back from Dumbledore's office.

"Maybe she got one of the teachers," Ron suggested helping himself to a second serving of potato mash with chicken legs and mixed vegetables. "I mean, look at the Head Table. It's literally deserted."

Harry looked up and agreed. The only ones there were Pomfrey, McGonnagal and Flitwick.

"Maybe she got Hagrid," Ron laughed, "and is eating lunch in his hut!"

* * *

Hermione looked around her second, quite spacious bedroom, in the shape of a pentagon. The walls were a pale yellow with a somewhat fuller orange pattern on them. A cushiony carpet of the same orange filled the floor, and Hermione's sock covered feet sunk into it. The ceiling was enchanted to see the sky outside, like the Great Hall. A comfortable looking bed stood along one wall with a nice, wooden desk right next to it. On the walls lining her bed were planks of wood for books and other stuff to keep. Then, diagonally opposite were a still empty wardrobe and a slim shelf. One door led to Severus's living room, the other to a bathroom as spacious as her bedroom, though in the shape of a circle. There was a sink with a mirror behind which was a small cabinet to hide make up and, if wished, medicine. Then, next to a shower and toilet, was a bath big enough for two people to lie in. The floor was made of ceramic tiles and, again, the ceiling was enchanted to see the sky. To her surprise she saw another door.

"It leads to your dormitory," a voice behind her said. It was her husband. She looked at him.

"Thought you might like your own bathroom even if you're sleeping there," he shrugged.

She smiled. "Thanks. It's beautiful."

Slightly embarrassed he cleared his throat. "Lunch is ready," he said. He left the room and she followed him to the living room. It was square and one of the walls was lined with a massive bookshelf going from the floor up to the ceiling, only leaving a gap big enough for one of the two sofas to fit in, which were placed in an L-shape facing the two doors leading to the bedrooms. Right next to Hermione's bedroom door and directly opposite one of the sofas was an elderly fireplace. On the sill was a glass sculpture of a snake.

"Draco gave it to me for Christmas," Severus explained, finding Hermione stare at it. He was silent for a moment. Then he said, "I'm sorry if he said anything offending to you." He then sat down on one of the sofas.

In between the two was a glass coffee table laden with plates offering ham sandwiches, cheese sandwiches, salad sandwiches, and numerous kinds of fruits and, for dessert, muffins with various fillings. As for drink, there were two cups and a jar of pumpkin juice.

Hermione too sat down, if stiffly, not too comfortable in the situation.

Severus cleared his throat again. "I didn't know what you like, so the house elves prepared numerous things."

Hermione nodded, taking a ham sandwich. She took a small bite and chewed on it for a long time.

Severus stared at her. "I'm sorry about earlier," he blurted out. She gave him a surprised look. "It's just the most unlikely thing to happen," he tried to explain. She nodded, again. Damn witch. Couldn't she talk?

She swallowed her mouthful of sandwich. "When will they find out?"

Severus blinked. Then he understood. "You have a lesson next, so your new name will appear on the register."

She nodded. She still looked pale and still had bloodshot eyes. Severus frowned. He stood up and returned minutes later with a phial. He put it down on her plate.

"What is it?" she slowly asked.

"Drink it," he said. His mouth slightly quirked. "It's not poison," he reassured her as she testily smelled the liquid. She gulped it down in one go, and within seconds she felt her eyes become clear again and the colour in her cheek return.

"Thanks," she whispered, taking another bite from her sandwich. She ate slowly.

It unnerved Severus to watch her like this. He grabbed an apple and bit into it, chewing slowly so as that the time would pass faster.

* * *

Ron and Harry were glad to find Hermione wait in front of the potions classroom. They had already thought their biggest fear had come true and Hermione had been pulled out of school by her husband.

"Hey," Harry said relieved. "Nice to see you."

"Who's your husband?" Ron, tactless as ever, asked bluntly. "It's not Malfoy, is it?"

"Thank God no!" Hermione gasped.

"Then who is it?" Ron questioned further.

Just then the door opened and they were let into the potions class.

"Sit down, be quiet," Snape barked, mean as always. He started taking the register.

"Malfoy, Draco," he called.

"Here, sir," Draco answered, knowing Hermione would come next. However, she didn't.

"Potter."

"Here, sir."

"Snape, Hermione."

"Here sir," Hermione answered just loud enough to be heard. She blushed deeply as everyone started talking.

"Quiet!" Snape boomed and everyone shut up, frightened.

Hermione sighed. Her new life had begun.


	3. 13 02

**Love by the Law**

Severus hadn't expected her to ever come down to his quarters, only to use her personal bathroom, which she did. She acted as if they had never been married, as expected. He didn't really care. A name didn't mean anything, as Romeo and Juliet proved.

However, even if they were only bound by name, he still had to be concerned about her feeling unwell. After seeing her being pale and clutching her stomach for three days in a row, he consulted Poppy Pomfrey, the school healer, rather than ask Hermione himself. Poppy only laughed at him.

"What's so funny may I ask?" he snarled.

She shook her head, laughing violently. "It's funny that you're so concerned about such a trivial matter, that's all."

He didn't understand. "What?"

"You're little Hermione is becoming a woman," Poppy snorted through her nose, which made her laugh only more.

"She's not my "little Hermione"," he sneered.

Somewhat embarrassed Severus left again. Back at his quarters he stood in front of his big book shelf and ran his fingers along the tails of the books. _Potions For Beginners, Potions All Sorts, Potions For the Household, Potions Every Day_. He read every title until he came to the one he'd been looking for. _SS Potions_. He pulled it out and paged through it until he came to a page titled _Lily's Potion_. In her third year she had started to complain so much about her period that he'd created a potion for her to shut her up. In return he'd received a kiss. He still smiled about it today, feeling Lily's lips on his even if it had only been for a few seconds.

Severus withdrew to his personal laboratory.

* * *

Hermione didn't even want to open her eyes, her tummy hurt unbearably and she wasn't in a very good mood. She opened them anyways and then went on her knees, feeling around the wall for the doorknob belonging to the door leading to her own personal bathroom. She found it, turned it and opened the door outwards. Because of good old magic it was like stepping to a room on the same height on the other side although the room actually was way down.

The lights from the ceiling weren't really bright yet, as it was still early morning, so numerous candles started burning the moment she entered, illuminating the whole room in a healthy summer day glow. She staggered over to the mirror and looked in, seeing her moody face framed by a bush of hair. Hermione sighed, reaching for her hairbrush. However, accidentally she brushed a phial she hadn't seen, off the sink. Thankfully it was made from unbreakable glass so it didn't crack as it smashed against the floor. She picked it up and read the label.

_Good Morning and a Happy Day – SS_

She raised her eyebrows wondering what it was and uncorked it. She sniffed but it didn't smell like anything. Carefully she drunk it, but it didn't taste like anything. For a moment she wondered if he was joking with her and had just given her water, but then instantaneously her tummy ache subsided and she felt happy. He must have known that she was on her period and brewed her a potion. She was thankful for it. Carefully she opened the door to her second bedroom. The only thing she'd placed in it was a quill, ink well and some parchment. She ripped a bit off and took the quill.

_Thanks – HG_

Hermione, though married, preferred to use her maiden name. It made her feel more comforted. She went into the living room and left it on the coffee table. Then she returned to her dorm where the other girls already started to wake up.

* * *

Severus was happy when he saw her dig in to her breakfast. The potion seemed to still work. However, secretly he was somewhat worried as attacks on muggle born students had increased significantly in the last few weeks; five were in the infirmary, all under the same mysterious body binder. He very well remembered when Filch had accused Harry of jinxing his cat. He only hoped Hermione wouldn't be attacked.

* * *

Hermione was glad that Severus started to brew her the potion whenever she had period pain, and it made him seem less hardhearted and better to live with. She even moved some of her stuff into her bedroom in his quarters, though she didn't feel too comfortable to be around him much. It was good though because there she got some quietness she much needed. All students were scared because of the attacks and she herself felt nervous. After all, she was muggle born.

Not only the attacks but also Harry brought her worries. Recently he'd gotten quite a few detentions with Lockhart and always ended up walking back to the Gryffindor Tower on his own. Afterward he constantly reported to Ron and her about hearing voices. Hermione wanted to talk about it with Severus, but she feared he'd only pass it off as a way to get even more attention. Then she thought about all his books, but she wasn't sure whether she was allowed to look at them or not, and she wasn't bold enough to ask.

Even more so, all of Gryffindor except her were influentially convinced that the Slytherins knew something about those strange attacks. She was worried they'd do something stupid in order to find out.

Because of all her worries, she preferred to do her homework in her new bedroom. No one ever disrupted her there or asked her if she could do their homework. As one crisp March afternoon she sat at her desk, there was a knock and then Severus opened the door.

"No," she said, annoyed. "Harry, I won't do your potions homework."

Severus raised his eyebrows. "You do Potter's homework?"

Hermione blushed. "Rarely."

"Maybe I should lower his grade?" Severus mused.

His wife looked sceptically at him. "You literally fail him anyways, what's the point?"

"Dumbledore has so far kept me from _actually_ failing him," her husband lectured her.

She looked at him. "What do you want? You never talk with me outside of class."

Severus sniffed. "Can't a husband inquire why his wife is upset?"

"I'm not upset," Hermione told him.

"But you have something on your mind." Severus leaned against the door frame.

Hermione returned his look. "What if I have?"

"Tell me."

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because it's none of your business." Hermione imitated Severus's sniffing.

He looked at her, not the slightest bit amused. "It's something about Potter."

"It's not him trying to find more attention," Hermione snapped.

Severus chuckled. "How did you ever guess?"

Hermione looked blankly at her professor. She had never seen him as much as smile and he had just chuckled. The world had gone mad.

"Now tell me, Minnie."

She glared at him. "Only my parents call me that," she hissed. "Not even Harry and Ron do."

Severus sighed. "Hermione, what is on your mind? Something is troubling you, I can see it."

Hermione stood up from her desk and settled down on her soft bed. She crossed her legs and played around with her socks, trying to find the right words.

"I'm worried about Harry," she began. "He's been hearing voices." She looked up, awaiting a sarcastic comment from Severus. None came. He just looked blankly at her. She continued, "Every time he walks on his own to the Gryffindor Tower after his weekly, almost daily detention with Lockhart, he walks past this one wall, and every time he does, he hears this voice hissing at him. _I will come and get you. I will kill you_. Things like that." Again she looked up, almost hoping to find him saying that Harry had lost it with all those detentions with Lockhart. But nothing. "Lastly, all Gryffindors except me seem to be plotting a plan against Slytherin, deeply convinced that they have something to do with the attacks."

Severus completely ignored the last statement. "Have you ever been to the wall?" he asked her.

Hermione nodded.

He vanished out of sight and came back a moment later with a stone bowl containing a bright green light.

"What is it?" she asked curiously, shifting her position to get a better look.

"Pensive," he simply said placing it on her desk where there was space. He took his wand out and placed it on her temple. She looked at him bewildered. "Think about the event," he told her calmly. She did, remembering everything as it exactly happened. She felt the wand leave her temple and slowly she started to forget more and more details, until, at last, she didn't remember at all.

She looked up at Severus, seeing him guide a silver piece of string into the green light.

"This is your thought," he explained. "I'm placing it in the pensive so that we can re-watch it."

"And it'll help you tell me what's wrong with Harry?" Hermione asked helpful.

Severus shrugged. "Perhaps. If it doesn't, nothing will." He reached out his hand to her, and reluctantly she took it. Then he engulfed himself into the pensive and pulled her with him...

_They found themselves staring at a stone wall which he recognized to be from the fourth floor, near Lockhart's quarters. A second later, Harry came around the corner, tugging Ron and Hermione behind him._

_"Here!" he said triumphantly, pointing at the pile of bricks._

_Ron raised his eyebrows. "I hear nothing," he muttered._

_Hermione hit his arm before she turned to Harry. "Harry, can you hear it now?"_

_Harry listened for a moment._

_"I'll come for you," he whispered. "I'll kill you. I'm looking for you right now. I can smell your blood…"_

_Severus strained his ears to try and hear. His eyes picked something up, and he nodded as if he'd known it'll be there..._

The moment they were in Hermione's bedroom again, he strode out, not caring that it took her a moment to come over the shock of what just happened. Once she had, she followed him.

Severus stood in front of the big bookshelf paging through a thick leather book, until he found what he was looking for.

"Your dear Mr. Potter _has_ found a way to get more attention," he concluded. He showed Hermione the page.

**PARSELMOUTH**

**Definition: A person who can hear snakes talk**

**Known Parselmouths: Salazar Slytherin, Tom Marvolo Riddle**

She looked up at him. Crinkled her nose. "Tom Riddle?"

"No one you should know," he snapped, closing the book.

She nodded. Then she gave him a grimace. "You think Harry is a parselmouth?"

Severus nodded. "I heard the snake hissing in the background. You want to go and break it to the Centre Of Attention?" He smirked.

She vanished inside her room.

Severus sat down on the sofa, sighing. She did look pretty cute when she was worried about something… Wait, what the hell was he thinking!

* * *

Hermione entered the overfilled common room. She shuffled her way through the crowd until she came to Ron and Harry who stood near the middle, on top of a table.

"What is going on?" she hissed.

"You'll see in a moment," Lee Jordan, from Fred and George's year, said secretively. He helped her up.

The door leading to the dormitories belonging to the girls opened and a seventh year girl came down the stairs, carrying a tablet as if it was of great importance. Everyone let her through to Harry, Ron and Hermione. She gave each one a goblet and a hair.

Hermione gave Harry a questioning look.

"Polyjuice," he smiled. "We all decided it'd be best for two or three of us to go undercover under the Slytherins. The potion will change our looks and for a certain time allowing us to act in the place of Goyle, Crab and Bullstrode."

Hermione blinked. "What?"

"In order to find out whether the Slyterins know anything or not," Ron exclaimed waving his hand about wildly.

"Which they do," Harry added. He already wore the uniform Goyle would wear, and Ron Crab's. The seventh year girl waved her wand and Hermione's uniform enlarged.

Ron and Harry put their hairs in their goblets and raised them high, making a big spectacle out of this. They slowly drowned the bubbly potions.

"Come on Hermione!" everyone cheered.

Hermione, not knowing what else to do, regretfully imitated her two best friends. Even as she transformed, she knew something was wrong.

Everyone stared at Goyle and Crab, and then at a furry creature, open mouthed.

"Meow," Hermione purred, scratching herself behind her ear.

Goyle and Crab were hurried out, knowing the polyjuice wouldn't last very long, while Hermione was escorted, by the seventh year girl and her best friend, to the infirmary. They hoped Snape wouldn't find out about his.


	4. 13 03

**Love by the Law**

_A/N: Myrtle's last name is made up_**  
**

"I know you can understand me," Severus snarled. Poppy had informed him that his wife had been brought to the infirmary, for some reason closely resembling a cat.

He watched Hermione, who was lying on one of the beds, stare right back at him with her cat eyes. "Tell me what happened," he demanded.

Poppy appeared next to him, shaking her head. "She won't be able to talk for some time."

"Meow," Hermione responded, as if saying "yes".

Severus, sitting next to the bed, tapped on his knee, impatiently. "Can I at least bring her to our quarters?"

Poppy frowned. "At any rate, don't feed her cat food."

He glared at her as he stood up and Hermione jumped off the bed and followed him to the fireplace. He moodily threw in floo powder and she leapt in with him.

Back in his quarters he settled on his sofa and Hermione jumped up, draping herself across his lap. Absentmindedly he started scratching her behind her ear. She stretched in comfort, purring loudly. He wondered if that turned her on in real life…

_What the bloody hell did he think? _She was thirteen, he more than twice her age. She was just married to him because of a half-witted law. She'd never want anything from him…

He noticed that Hermione had fallen asleep.

* * *

As the days passed, she slowly got her human characteristics back. Somehow Severus was happy, somehow Severus was annoyed.

Being quite lonely in the quarters all day she'd spent the evenings in the living room with him if he wasn't overseeing detention. She'd lie on the sofa next to him, he scratching behind her ear while reading a book. Once her claws disappeared completely Severus invited her to read any of the books on the bookshelf. She jumped at the idea, and spent her whole days reading until late at night when she'd fall asleep.

Sooner or later the effects of the polyjuice potion wore off completely. Then Severus stopped playing nice and confronted her.

"How did you get the polyjuice?" he asked her one night.

She winced, hiding behind a book about old runes. "When I went back to tell Harry that he's a parselmouth, all the Gryffindors were in the common room. One of the year seven girls had brewed the potion after they'd plotted the plan of infiltrating Slytherin that way. They talked me into accompanying Harry and Ron, but somehow I don't think that hair belonged to Millicent Bullstrode."

Severus sniffed. "She has numerous cats. Wouldn't wonder me if your dear friends picked up the wrong hair."

Hermione blushed deeply. "I'm sorry," she apologized. "I should have known better than to drink the potion. Sorry."

He sighed. Instead of answering to her apology he said, "I think you're well enough to return to your lessons tomorrow."

She nodded. "Thanks for letting me read the books."

He looked at her. "You are welcome to at any time, but rather not at night; you need your sleep."

* * *

Hermione was excited to get back to her lessons. It was already mid-April and teachers would soon start to prepare the students for the end of year tests, even if half a dozen of them lay in the infirmary.

All Gryffindors were glad to have her back on her feet, apologizing constantly about what happened and that she had to stay with Snape for such a long time. She just shrugged it off, though she knew that Severus would give the whole house detention, but evenly spaced apart for it not to be suspicious. After all, he had a reputation to uphold.

She knew Severus would tell her off because she didn't appear for lunch in the Great Hall, but she got a sandwich from the kitchen every day and then ate it on the way to the library. She knew there was something odd about Harry being a parselmouth and only now hearing the snake. Something was more than odd.

For weeks on end she researched possible answers during her lunch breaks, but each and everyone came to a dead end. Frustrated she spent her weekends glued to Severus's sofa hidden behind one of his books. It took him all he got to make her put them down to at least eat lunch let alone a snack for dinner. It was early June by the time she finally found something interesting in the library.

"Fuck," Hermione swore under her breath as her eyes scanned the page. She grew more and more worried. She had to warn someone. Instantaneously something else popped into her mind.

Not caring about what Ms. Pince would say, she ripped the page out of the book and scribbled on it, PENSIVE – BOOKSHOP LM + GW. She needed to re-watch that memory to conclude her theory.

She made her way out of the library and almost tore her school bag apart looking for something. Finally she triumphantly got out the hand mirror and made her way to the dungeons. Before turning a corner, however, she always first checked with the mirror. After all, she was muggle born.

* * *

Professor McGonnagal loomed over Harry and Ron eating lunch. "Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley," she said. The boys, jumping at hearing her voice, turned to look at her.

"Professor," Ron muttered with a full mouth.

"What do you want?" Harry added, his brows burrowed. They hadn't done anything wrong, and if this was about the detention with Snape, well then she should talk with him, not them. They didn't even know why they had received it.

McGonnagal frowned. "Manners, Potter," she said. Then she gave them a sympathetic look. "Madam Pomfrey wants you in the infirmary."

"Whatever she wants from us," Ron said hastily, "she's not getting it. I'm not going there for an injection or medical check up or whatever."

McGonnagal burrowed her brows, asking herself what was wrong with Weasley. "It is no vaccination and no medical exam," she slowly said. "It's about Hermione Granger…"

Harry and Ron had jumped up and left her sight before she could say "Quidditch". She sighed. The Golden Trio really were good friends.

* * *

Ron stared at the frozen Hermione. Her eyes were wide open, and her mouth slightly open as if she had intended to scream. Her right arm was half raised, and her fingers in a position as if they'd held something. She lay on a bed next to a first year Gryffindor, Colin Creevey.

"Will she ever become life again?" he asked dumbfounded.

Pomfrey shot him a deathly look. "Professor Sprout says the mandrakes are almost ready, and Professor Snape is prepared to immediately brew the potion."

Harry nudged Ron. "Idiot," he hissed. Then his stare returned to his best friend lying frozen on the infirmary bed. "Oh Hermione," he whispered. "What have you gotten yourself into now?"

The infirmary wing door opened and in rushed Snape. Harry and Ron pulled a grimace, wondering why he even bothered to come, and got ready to leave.

"You stay put, Potter," Severus snarled.

Harry looked at him. "My relatives might treat me like a dog, but that doesn't mean I am one."

Snape blinked, irritated. "What...?"

The door fell shut and Ron had gone out. Madam Pomfrey went into her office thinking they want some private time.

Harry shrugged. "What do you want? You normally don't talk to me unless you're having a go at me or telling me what to do in my detention."

Snape shrugged too. "This isn't a normal situation, is it?"

"Guess not," the Boy-Who-Lived sighed. "So, what is so special that you are willing to hold a civilized conversation with me about it?"

"Hermione didn't speak to you about you hearing voices, did she?"

Harry looked at him. "You suggested to her I go see a shrink, huh?"

"Shrink?" Snape asked bewildered.

Harry waved his hand impatiently. "A muggle doctor who'll tell you whether or not you're crazy."

Snape nodded slowly. "No," he conjectured. "Quite the opposite actually." He quirked from the corner of his mouth. "Congratulations, Potter; you have found yourself another way to gain attention, though not necessarily good one."

This time Harry blinked in irritation. "Come again?"

Snape grew serious. "Hermione told me about your situation, and let me have a look at her memory." He didn't leave the boy time to ask how. "I came to the conclusion that there was a snake behind the wall, crawling through the water pipes most likely."

Harry was even more befuddled. "I… can hear snakes…?"

"And talk to them," Snape added. "You're a parselmouth, Potter."

Harry nodded as if understanding, but it puzzled him further instead. "Okay…"

Snape saw Harry didn't believe him. Sighing he pulled out his wand and conjured up a small yet dangerous looking snake. Harry stepped back in fright, but the snake slithered towards him. It started moving its mouth.

"_Great danger awaitsss you_," it hissed. "_In the basssementsss of Hogwartsss!_"

"_What do you mean?_" Harry replied.

The snake looked him in his eyes. "_A girl… lying on the floor… with a sssnake waking above!_" Seconds later it vanished into thin air.

"Wait!" Harry called out.

Snape raised his eyebrows. "What did it say?"

Harry looked at Snape with an expression of great bewilderment. "You… you didn't hear that?" he yelped.

"Not every walking person is a parselmouth," Snape snapped, having hoped he'd made it clear earlier.

"It… it said great danger awaits me," Harry recalled, ignoring his teacher's sarcastic comment. "Great danger awaits me in the basements of Hogwarts!"

"There is no actual basement," Snape reported. "Beneath the dungeons, there is nothing."

Harry ignored him. "There's a girl lying on the floor with a snake waking above… what could it mean?"

Snape sighed, looking at Hermione. "You tell me," he said softly. Harry knew that Snape was sure Hermione knew something helpful. Otherwise she'd never have risked walking around on her own like that.

* * *

Severus sat on his sofa, tapping his fingers impatiently on his leg. The basements of Hogwarts… what did that damn snake mean? Was there something dangerous in the dungeons? If yes, why didn't it say dungeons instead of basement? Oh, why did animals always have to talk in riddles? He got up. This got too much on his nerves. He went to the bookshelf. Somewhere he had _Hogwarts: A History_. If there was a basement no one knew, about then it must say something about that in there.

Suddenly he noticed Hermione's train of thought. Potter was a parselmouth, like Salazar Slytherin, one of the founders of Hogwarts. If there was a snake running through the water pipes, it must be Salazar's pet or something like that, and if it got somewhere into the waterpipes, it must get somewhere out. The question was, where?

He found the book and started looking through the index. Water pipes lead through the basement, so that stupid snake he'd conjured up had been right. Danger waits in the basement. However, there was no basement. On a second thought, if it was Slytherin's pet, then he must have build some place in the castle for it to stay. Maybe that was the basement…

He found Slytherin's page. He turned to it and, beneath the heading, it said: _Also look: Slytherin (House), Slytherin (House Ghosts), Chamber of Secrets_. Chamber of Secrets… Severus burrowed his eyes. Why did the name send a cold shiver down his back? Nothing in the last decade, since Voldemort's disappearance, had done that. He turned to the page titled CHAMBER OF SECRETS.

_The Chamber of Secrets was allegedly created under the dungeons of __Hogwarts__ castle__ during Medieval times by Salazar Slytherin, who disagreed with the other Hogwarts founders on the merits of blood purity. The Chamber of Secrets is home to an ancient Basilisk, which, according to legend, was intended to be used to purge the school of Muggle-born students_.

Severus blinked numerous times. This whole lot of information stood in a book thousands of people have read and no one ever made a connection. One last question remained, though. How did the Basilisk get into the school from the pipes? Then his eyes fell on the _Also Look_ suggestions: _Deaths of Students_ was the second one. Interested where this would lead him he looked at _Deaths of Students_, right after _Attacks on Students_.

**1943 – Myrtle O'Bonnely**

Myrtle… Myrtle… Moaning Myrtle! Severus closed the book; he needed to talk with the ghost. Perhaps her death had something to do with all this. After all, it somehow seemed to be connected to the Chamber of Secrets.

* * *

"Oooh," Myrtle laughed happily as Severus entered the second floor lavatory. "So many people visiting me today!"

Severus frowned. "Who else visited you?"

She giggled joyfully. "You'd like to know, wouldn't you?" She flew upside down towards him, making numerous somersaults in the air. "Why would I tell you?" she asked. "You've never been interested in me."

He snarled, "Tell me who it was."

She sighed exaggeratedly. "Nooo!"

Severus, not in the mood for jokes, pulled his wand out. Before Myrtle could speak she was sucked into one of the toilets. There could really only be one person who could have done it: Potter.

Not wasting any time he turned on his heels and left for Dumbledore's office. Once there he found the Headmaster ready to go out somewhere.

"Where are you going?" he asked him.

Albus gave him a tired look. "I have been put on early holiday, Severus," he sighed. "After what happened this afternoon, the Ministry arrested Hagrid, suspecting he opened the chamber again, and then put me on early holiday after finding out that yet another student was attacked."

Severus was instantly alert. "Who?"

"Ginevra Shacklebolt disappeared," the headmaster sighed. He grabbed his wand and put it in his cloak pocket. Then he looked up. "It doesn't look good for Hogwarts, Severus. Our only hope is that the mandrakes will be enough to cure the students and that Mrs. Shacklebolt will mysteriously come back, preferably alive. But even then, Hogwarts might get shut down. After all, this is the second time this has happened, and who knows if there will be a third?"

The door opened again and Professor Sprout came in.

"The mandrakes are ready," she said.

Severus sighed. He didn't have time to find Potter and talk him out of going down to the chambers. He needed to brew a potion. If Potter should die, it wouldn't even matter. Hogwarts was to be shut down anyways and his relatives wouldn't even give a damn whether he returned home or not. Sometimes the world really was unfair.


	5. 13 04

**Love by the Law**

Hermione felt like the Sleeping Beauty as she steadily opened her eyes. It was as if she had woken up from 100 years of sleep. She couldn't move her muscles very much although she was profoundly alert. They were weakened by the lack of exercise.

"You have it better than Creevey," a familiar voice smirked. She blinked a couple of times and made out Severus Snape sitting next to her bed. Looking around she noticed she was in the infirmary.

"What happened?" she whispered. Her head buzzed and it took her a moment to adjust to being awake.

"The Basilisk got you, but luckily you only saw his eyes in the reflection of your mirror," Severus reported.

Her eyes wandered to Colin Creevey's bed. He had been petrified months ago. His parents sat next to him. He must really be feeling weak.

"So you figured it out?" she asked.

Severus nodded. "Yes."

"So you have the diary?" she asked.

He gave her a puzzled look. "What diary?"

She smirked. "So you didn't figure it out. I'm pretty sure that last summer in Flourish & Blotts, Lucius Malfoy slipped a diary within Ginny's books. That's why I wrote _PENSIVE – BOOKSHOP LM + GW_ on the page with the information about the Chamber of Secrets. I wanted to check the memory again."

Severus frowned. "I don't know of any paper. Potter must have found it and then drawn his conclusions. He must know about that diary you're talking about. You can ask him later."

Hermione frowned. "You're a former Death Eater, you should know about it."

"What?" Severus asked bamboozled. "I don't know anything about a diary."

Hermione's brows raised themselves high and she smiled sufficiently. "For once I know more than you do," she laughed. "Tom Riddle's Dairy. Does that ring a bell?" She didn't let him answer the question. "In the Chamber of Secrets lives a snake. So, Salazar built the chamber especially for it. He was a parselmouth. What better way to guard it but to enchant the entrance to the chamber so that you have to say something in parsel to gain access? How many known parselmouths are there? Two, not counting Harry. The second one is Tom Riddle. He isn't here though, so he needed someone to open the chambers for him. Then I figured out that Tom Marvolo Riddle is an anagram for Lord Voldemort. Malfoy was a former follower of You-Know-Who, and he obviously messed with Ginny's school books."

"Then why is it so important?" Severus asked. "Isn't it just an old diary?"

"You see," Hermione said cleverly, "an old diary can't control a person like a demon, can it? So, obviously, something has to be wrong with it. In one of the books from your bookshelf they talked about hokruxes. I instantly assumed that the diary is one." She frowned. "Someone should go see Dumbledore."

"Don't worry," Severus said, calming her down. "Potter, stupid as he is, went into the Chambers and most likely brought it back with him. Dumbledore should know about it by now."

Hermione sighed. "I go away for one damn moment and already they risk their lives _again_."

Severus sighed too. "Some people never change and simply can't be helped," he said. "It seems Potter and Weasley are two of them."

* * *

The year ended heroically with a commemoration to celebrate Harry and Ron's success in the Chambers as well as that all students had been healed again. Furthermore, Dumbledore privately congratulated Hermione on her accomplishment in finding it all out before anyone else, and thus being able to lead Harry in the right direction. Openly he announced that the Ministry had decided to let Hogwarts stay open, and Hagrid returned from Azkaban just in time to hear the good news.

All in all, it was yet another turbulent year. Having escaped death by inches once again, Hermione, Ron and Harry boarded the Hogwarts Express for their journey home days later. All of them sat silently during the whole ride thinking about everything that had happened in the last year. All three were curious to find out what would confront them after the holidays.

"Where are you going to stay over the holidays?" Harry asked Hermione as they stepped off the train. "With Snape or your parents?"

"My parents," she replied. "Although Severus said he'd go shopping with me." She smiled. "He is a nice guy, you know."

Harry grimaced. "He's an old bat. Even if I spent nonillion years with him, I wouldn't grow to like him."

Hermione giggled. "He hates your guts, obviously not. He only finds me annoying, that's easier to live with."

Harry shrugged before he passed through the wall. Hermione followed him, and once in the muggle world again, she waved him good bye as he went home with his whale of an uncle while she was embraced and whirled around by her dad.

"I missed you so much Minnie," he breathed into her ear.

She smiled. "I missed you too, Dad." Somehow though, she missed the wizarding world more.


	6. 13 05

**Love by the Law**

At home her parents fondled her, asking thousands of questions about her husband. Hermione wasn't quite sure what she had expected to happen, but she'd known that her parents would certainly not just ignore the fact that their thirteen year old daughter had gotten married to a literal stranger only months earlier. Even after she'd assured them that Severus hadn't tried anything and, quite the opposite, been helpful rather than disrespectful, they weren't too happy about the whole situation. Hermione understood.

In order to get away from everything and not let the past few months ruin the only time of the year the Grangers had with their daughter, they all went on a holiday to France. For Hermione it was very informative and knowledgeable, but the best part had been that she could spend time with the two most important people in her life. Her biggest worry had probably been that her parents didn't want anything to do with her any longer.

After almost a month in the foreign country, they returned home, and Mr. and Mrs. Granger were sad to learn that their daughter would nearly immediately go off with her friends to Diagon Alley again, though they were happy for her that her friends stuck with her even though she was married to the most hated teacher in the school. What she didn't tell them was that she actually went shopping with her husband.

"You haven't read the Daily Prophet lately, have you?" Severus asked as Hermione came up to him in The Leaky Cauldron. She still smelled of France.

She shook her head. "No. Should I have?"

He nodded. "Don't be surprised to see posters of Sirius Black everywhere when you enter Diagon Alley. He escaped from Azkaban half way through the holidays. They made their way to the back where the entrance to the shopping street was.

"Who is he?" she asked curiously.

"I'll tell you later when we can discuss it under four eyes," he muttered under his breath as the brick wall parted itself in the middle and opened the view to a busy yet always magical and stunning shopping street.

"Welcome to Diagon Alley," he smirked.

"I have been here before," Hermione lectured him annoyed.

He shrugged. "It's always spectacular to see this sight, even if it's half deserted."

Her eyes widened in surprise. "_Half-deserted?_ When is Diagon Alley ever half-deserted?"

Pain shot through his eyes and she swallowed. "I wish you will never see it like that," he sighed. Then he changed the subject. "Got your booklist?" They turned towards Flourish & Blotts. Hermione nodded and pulled it out of her trouser pocket.

"By the way," Severus said, opening the door for her. "Potter finally had enough of being brought down to earth by his relatives and decided to quit. He's been spending the last week here in The Leaky Cauldron and around Diagon Alley, cramming his stomach full with ice cream and wasting his money while at the same time writing autographs. So don't be surprised to see him."

After all of the shopping was done they retreated to The Leaky Cauldron to eat a late lunch. There they not only met Harry but almost the whole Weasley clan, excluding the two oldest boys and Luna who was spending her holidays with her father. They were less happy to see Severus than Hermione. Molly couldn't help but take Hermione aside to question her.

"And he has been treating you well?" she asked worriedly.

Hermione, slightly irritated, said yes. She answered all Mrs. Weasley's questions truthfully, though leaving the older woman still somewhat unsure.

After lunch Ron and Harry wanted to go back to Diagon Alley to go to the pet shop and get medicine for Ron's rat, Scrabbers, who seemed to have suddenly become ill. Severus pressed Hermione a few galleons in the hand told her to get a pet or something else for herself. She nodded thankfully.

"I didn't know there was a pet shop in Diagon Alley," she said joining her best friends just as the wall parted.

Ron laughed hysterically. "It's the most comical shop here, how can you not have noticed it!" he cried, laughing tears in his eyes.

Harry nodded. "You can sometimes hear the animals scream and screech during the night. It is absolutely deterring."

Hermione eyed him as they stepped into the now less busy but still crammed shopping street. They shuffled past numerous couples, mostly middle aged wizards pulling Hogwarts students along.

"You okay?" she asked him. "I've heard you've had a rough time with your relatives this year."

Harry shrugged. "Just finally snapped, you know? All the anger I've bottled up over the years just came out when they pushed one button too many and I exploded like a nuclear bomb."

"Like what?" Ron, who had listened to the conversation, asked interested. "Is it a muggle thingy? I'm sure Dad will want to hear all about it."

Harry smiled. "I'll tell him later."

They turned a corner and, sure enough, there was a colourful shop standing out exceptionally. All sorts of strange animal noises come from the insides. It sounded like a whole zoo was being tortured. Hermione felt somewhat frightened.

Inside the trio first admired various exotic bird species screeching their lungs out. After being scared away from a cage of flying frogs by one of them trying to bite Harry, they finally made it to the front desk where Ron presented his rat to the shop owner. He glanced at it for a second before kneeling down behind the counter to get some medicine. In that exact moment a furry ball jumped up onto the desk, scaring away Scrabbers while also throwing off numerous jars filled with flies and worms. It "meowed" drastically as if it was a drama queen.

Scrabbers, scared to death, fled the shop in a hurry. Ron and Harry took after it. Hermione stayed, and helped the elderly shop owner to clean up.

"Crooksshank is always this excited," he sighed, finally putting the medicine on the counter. Then he noticed that Ron had vanished.

"I'll take it for him," Hermione said, paying and taking the bottle. Then her eyes fell on the ginger cat laying in a corner and cleaning itself.

* * *

Severus sighed as he saw the trio come back, Weasley looking as offended as possible and Potter on his side, while Hermione had a furry meatball in her arms and strode along with her chin held high.

"He tried to murder my rat!" Weasley shouted.

Hermione whirled around on her heel. She must have practised a lot of time to do it so perfectly, Severus mused, smiling inside.

"Crookshanks is just a cat," she hissed. "It's in his instincts to murder stupid rats like Scrabbers."

"Scrabbers might be a rat but he is still a living creature," Potter cut in. "You're always saying that all living creatures should have equal rights."

"Exactly!" Hermione snapped. "If I would punish Crookshanks for following his instincts I would forbid him his right to hunt for food as it is his nature."

Weasley, knowing he couldn't win this time, gave up.

"We're all staying here for the last couple of days," Arthur said to Severus. "Any chance of you joining us with Hermione?"

Severus shrugged. "If she wants to, why not?"

The last week of holiday the Weasleys and the Snapes spent at the Leaky Cauldron. Hermione tried to ask Severus about Sirius Black on numerous occasions but he told her to bugger off and wait. Huffing she'd disappear next door to talk with Harry and Ron.

Marriage was harder than Severus could ever have thought. Apart from the fact that he was married to a teenager who didn't particularly like him, he tried to make this as easy as possible while she always found excuses to start quarrels with him. At the same time he wasn't too flabbergasted. Lily, though his best friend, had always had to restrain herself from disagreeing with him on a great matter and then starting a fight. It must be a woman thing.

After Mr. and Mrs. Weasley promised him to take good care of Hermione, Severus left on the night of the thirty-first. He wanted to start preparing for the new school year as early as possible.

* * *

Unlike the year before, the sorting ceremony was back on the pile of Uninspiring Ceremonies. Severus was married so he didn't give a damn which girl got sorted into which house. The only thing he was worried about was that Hermione was absent. And so were Potter. Where they planning a brainless stunt even before the year had started? Then he realised that Flitwick did the name calling, not Minerva. And Poppy Pomfrey was missing too. So, no plot preparations and scheming but some serious meeting.

Halfway through the ritual the doors to the Great Hall opened and Harry, closely followed by Hermione, came in. Minutes later McGonnagal and the healer came in through the teacher's entrance.

"She's okay?" he asked under his breath.

"Worried now about your little Hermione?" Poppy giggled.

Severus grunted. He wasn't going to start an argument here.

* * *

The next day, after the last lesson was finished, Hermione grew anticipated. She started being fidgety after lunch, and hardly listened to her teachers. She knew that that afternoon she'd finally find out the truth about Sirius Black.

She literally raced from the transfiguration classroom down to the dungeons. Hermione didn't care that she barged into numerous other students, and that they shouted at her. She wanted she _needed_ to hear about the prisoner.

As she rushed past the Great Hall she didn't pay attention to any students around her. Only when her name was called did she slow down, and look around in a bad mood for whoever had yelled her name.

With her shaking chin held high, a pale girl around twelve walked over to Hermione.

"Are you Hermione Snape?" she asked, her voice slowly dying down.

Hermione, puzzled why a Hufflepuff would want to talk to her, nodded. She was in a hurry to get to Severus's quarters to finally find out about Sirius Black. It annoyed her that she'd been stopped.

The girl took all her courage together. "I'm Miriam Donnelley, second year Hufflepuff. Professor Snape has a pensive, right?"

Hermione nodded, again. "How do you know?"

She waved her hand dismissively, suddenly saddened. "It doesn't matter," she sighed. Then she looked up at the older girl, seriousness painted all over her face. "I want to report a rape."

Now Hermione understood. The girl wanted Severus's pensive so that someone could watch it and believe her.

"And who raped you, may I ask?" she asked Miriam.

Miriam frowned. "Our DADA teacher from last year, Gilderoy Lockhart."

* * *

Hermione looked up as Severus stepped out of the pensive. He looked slightly disturbed, and that meant a lot.

Miriam shot him a hopeful glance. "And?" she whispered. She clung onto the cocoa mug in her hand.

"Even the stupidest muggle court would convict Lockhart on numerous counts of rape. However, he _is_ at St. Mungus being treated for insanity, so there's not a lot we can do here."

Hermione stood up. "Miriam is traumatized about it." She gestured at the pale girl. "Maybe she agreed to at first, but certainly told him to stop not long after they started. Even the most pathetic muggle doctor will probably tell that she has vaginal injuries. The least we can do here is getting her into therapy."

Miriam gave her a startled look. "Therapy?"

Hermione nodded softly. "It's a way the muggle use to come to terms about something in a slow, relaxing way. Most times you'll talk to a trained professional about what happened; in other cases you'll receive other types of therapy."

Severus gave her a vary look. "Unfortunately therapy is only available in the muggle world, and we can't just smuggle Ms. Donnelley out of the school."

"There has to be a way," Hermione insisted. "I mean, what are you going to do? Send her off not caring what'll happen to her? In three years she'll be married again, Severus, and if we don't do something now she'll be scarred for life, and by the time she gets married again her new husband will rape her again, over and over and over."

Miriam watched frightened as Snape grabbed his wife by the wrist and pulled her close to him. He whispered something into her ear, but instead of replying she pulled free and strode, chin held high, where Miriam suspected to be her bedroom. Snape then muttered something under his breath before he too disappeared somewhere.

She showed herself out.

* * *

"_Has someone ever molested you?_" His voice rang still in her ears. She wanted to forget about it, push it to the back of her mind and never let it crawl to the front line again. What had her teacher once said? "Don't be a victim but a survivor.". She could not let the thought get to her.

* * *

"Don't be a victim but a survivor." - Ronnie. (Look at my profile for the page the quote was on.)


	7. 14 01

**Love by the Law**

Severus knew it might have been a bit blunt and uncalled for, yet in his head he had a right to know, and if it upset her then he needed her to help her come to terms with it. After all he was he husband, and no matter how much he wished, he'll never be heartless.

At the same time he knew he'd touched a sensitive point, so he kept from asking further and silently brewed her her potion every month. He didn't disturb her while she did her homework. He vanished into his bedroom the moment her door creaked open and she came into the living room to read. A bit of distance did both some good.

No one noticed the winter creep upon autumn, so the first snow was a huge surprise. Only then the inhabitants in the castle realised that the Christmas holidays weren't far off. For once Severus spoke to Hermione.

"Will you go home for Christmas?" he asked.

She shrugged. Though she wasn't mad at him anymore she still had a grudge for even daring to ask a question such as this, not pertaining to him in the least.

"Haven't decided yet."

Severus looked at her for a moment, sitting at her desk working on her ancient runes essay while preparing her muggle studies diagram. "How do you manage to go to all lessons?" he asked curiously. He was sideways leaning against the open doorframe.

She shrugged again. "Doesn't concern you."

"Some of the lessons are at the same time, no possible way for you to be in all."

She looked at him. "But I am, Severus. You can check my attendance records; I haven't failed to attend every class on my schedule. Not even once."

He raised his eyebrows, but let the subject go. Perhaps picking it up again at a later time might reveal some more information. Suddenly thinking of a way to get on her good side again, he asked her, "Want to go shopping in Diagon Alley? It's bigger and better than Hogsmeade."

She smiled. "I'd like to. Would be nice to get a larger choice of Christmas presents." Her husband nodded.

Severus continued to stare at her. She had her uniform on, a skirt hugging her figure to the last millimetre in a perfect way. Her shirt was fitted, and her cardigan unbuttoned. Her tie lay on her bed and the top buttons on her shirt were unbuttoned. God, feeling up her thigh underneath the skirt was one thing, but –

_No._ She was still his student. He couldn't get thoughts like this now. They weren't even married a full year and yet, he already started to fantasize about her. What would it be like by the end of her seventh?

Following a trip to Diagon Alley and an afternoon of shopping came the Christmas holidays. Hermione had, in fact, decided to go home. _Most likely to get away from me_, Severus thought. Thus he was surprised to find, on Christmas Morning, that there was, in fact, a present from her under the tree. _To: SS From: HG_. It was written in her scruffy handwriting. As he unpacked it he found it to be a picture of her in a silver frame…

_"Mrs. Snape, could you stay behind?" he calls. While the students file out of the classroom his wife comes over to him._

_"Yes, sir?" she says, almost obediently._

_He pulls her into a tight embrace after magically locking the door and placing a silencing spell on it, and kisses her. His hand feels up her skirt, up her thigh and –_

What. The. Hell. What was wrong with him? Was he going to start masturbating over a simple picture of her? A simple yet still adoringly pretty picture… NO. He had to stop this right now. What if he lost control over himself and ended up raping her? He couldn't take any chances. If the impossible was to come true, she'd come in her own time…

_What was he thinking?_ She'd never ask him for such a thing. He needed to come to terms that he'll never ever have sex with her. Never ever. Maybe he should get into therapy…

* * *

For Hermione, Christmas was short-lived. Her mind was always on either Harry, haunted by Sirius Black, or on her husband Severus, who'd probably had thrown her picture away by now. No matter how hard her parents tried to get her into a Christmassy mood, her thoughts were persistently on Hogwarts. Maybe she shouldn't have gone home for Christmas…

Her return was a relief. She hadn't been able to concentrate on any of her homework, and she wondered if she'd overdone it by taking all available classes. She knew that she seriously needed to drop one sooner or later. Homework took more time than she had, and no amount of coffee in the world could keep her from being sluggish and only half aware during the day. She'd initially hoped that the Christmas holidays would get her some peace, especially being so far from the wizarding world and her actual worries, yet being away only made things worse.

She had reason though. Upon her arrival, the first thing Harry showed her was a new broom, a Firebolt. He presented it pompously, and ignored her worries that it might be from Sirius Black. She suggested to hand it over to one of the professors for them to check for any dark spells enchanted to throw Harry off the broom the moment he was high in the air.

"I'm not going to do that," he insisted right away. "What if it's not from Sirius Black?"

She shorted. She'd known this would come. "Remember your first year, Harry? Your first game?"

"When Snape tried to hex his broom," Ron added, trying to be helpful. He was with Harry on this one, yet he was also mildly concerned about his safety. He didn't know who to go with, so he decided to stay neutral.

"_Professor _Snape tried to rescue Harry!" Hermione hissed violently. "Quirrel wanted Harry to die. What if Black wants you to die too? I mean, he betrayed your parents, why wouldn't he want to finish the deed?"

Harry got slightly worried, knowing she is right, but he stood his stand. "No. It's my broom and I decide what'll happen to it." Just then Oliver Wood walked past and he went off to talk with the team captain.

Ron sighed. "Why would Sirius Black even bother to spend such a lot of money on Harry if he wouldn't want to kill him?"

Instantaneously Hermione's eyes began to twinkle. "I'll find out," she said, racing up to the girls' dormitories. Now she'd finally find out the secret surrounding Sirius Black. After all this waiting.

* * *

Severus jumped up from the sofa, alarmed, as a door slammed open. In his hand was a book, in the other his wand. A second later Hermione stood in front of him. She was out of breath. He looked silently at her, waiting for an explanation for this intrusion while he tucked his wand away.

"Who is Sirius Black?" she gasped for air.

Severus, calmed down now, sat back down, moodily. "Potter's godfather," he said swiftly, getting back to his book.

Hermione blinked. "That… that's all? Why is it a secret?"

He looked up at her. "Wouldn't you be traumatized to find out that your godmother literally killed your parents?"

She sat down next to him, dumbstruck. "I guess so…" Then she shot up again. "_Fuck!_"

"Language," he growled, this time without looking up.

"_Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!_"

He gave her an annoyed look. "Do I have to start taking away points from Gryffindor for you to stop talking profanities?"

She glared at him. "Harry got a Firebolt from Sirius, and Gryffindor Quidditch practise is tonight!"

"Fuck," Severus swore, shooting up.

* * *

"Potter!" Minerva called, rushing down the main staircase. She was relived to find the boy still in the entrance area rather than already out on the field. Her eyes narrowed as she strode towards him. Yes, there was a Firebolt in his hand.

"Yeah, Professor?" he asked.

"We need to get out," Oliver said, fidgeting. "Ravenclaw won't be beat like this." He snapped his fingers for effect.

Minerva was left cold by his lust to win. She grabbed the Firebolt away from Harry and said, "And your dear Mr. Potter might fall off his broom like this." She snapped her fingers, imitating him.

Oliver's eyes grew big. "You're taking the broom away?" he croaked, his voice leaving him.

"Until it is thoroughly examined, yes," she called over her shoulder, leaving for her office.

Oliver unexpectedly looked very ill.

* * *

Hermione was furious that any of the Gryffindors refused to talk to her because of her ratting to the teachers that the broom had been from Sirius Black. Thus she spent her evenings on which she for once didn't have homework to do – she'd thrown Divination, it was wasting her time – on Severus's sofa, reading.

"I thought you'd like it," Severus muttered.

Hermione looked at the book cover, realising it was the one he'd given her for Christmas. _Wizarding Laws A-Z_.

"Yes," she said. "It's very interesting to learn about all the different laws keeping you from doing things or allowing you to do other things. I mean, did you know, for example, that house elves literally have no rights at all? If their masters wanted to, they could keep them without clothing and without a shelter above their heads, and while half-human creatures like werewolves have some rights, they are still more limited than other's…" She trailed off noticing that Severus was only half listening. _Stupid me_, she thought, angry at herself. _He probably already knows this..._ Somewhat embarrassed she closed the book and went to her bedroom.

As she went to bed that night she saw the full moon in the sky, shining proudly and glamorously as always. In the distance she could hear a wolf howl in its honour.


	8. 14 02

**Love by the Law**

It was obvious that, with Severus covering their DADA lesson the next day and even dropping a huger hint by choosing the chapter concerning werewolves, that there was something off about Professor Lupin, who, as she thought about it, was also Cho Chang's husband. Was he by any chance a werewolf?

She never got the chance to ask. Quidditch season came and Harry got his Firebolt back just in time for the first game. While the Gryffindors were still in a mood about the whole situation, they reluctantly agreed it had been for his safety, and were just glad that they had it back. However, to keep his Firebolt for the final game, he used his Nimbus 2000.

* * *

_A Dementor is a shadowy creature, regarded as one of the foulest that occupy the world. Dementors nourish from human happiness, and thus cause hopelessness and desolation to any who are near them. They can also devour a person's soul, leaving their victims in an undeviating vegetative state, and thus are habitually referred to as soul-sucking fiends. _

_Dementors embrace no loyalty, with the exception of to whoever will supply them with the largest branch of people to feed off. They can not be destroyed, though their numbers can be restricted if the circumstances in which they multiply are diminished._

Hermione looked up from her DADA book. "What'll happen to Sirius once he's been caught?" She was in Severus' living room reading ahead in her school books.

"He'll receive the Dementor's kiss," Severus replied, as if he'd get a normal lunch after being captured. "How's Potter doing?"

At the first game the Dementors guarding the gates of Hogwarts had been attracted by the sudden mass of people, and they had come onto the field. Consequently they had distracted Harry so much that he fell from his broom, and while Dumbledore managed to cushion his deep fall his broom had token off right into the Whomping Willow. Currently Harry was in the infirmary recovering from a concussion.

"He's doing fine," Hermione reported. "Madam Pomfrey said she'll release him tomorrow."

"Release him?" Severus snorted. "Sounds like a prisoner."

"Isn't anyone who is in the infirmary?" Hermione chuckled.

Severus looked at her. She chuckled… usually she was serious. Something was on her mind, unless she had gone insane.

"What's wrong?" he asked her.

She looked at him, and Crookshanks sprung onto her lap. "What do you mean? What would be wrong?"

He sighed. He put his hand on her thigh and leaned close to her. Seeing her being uncomfortable he removed it immediately before he whispered into her ear, "I know when something is on your mind, Minnie."

She gave him a cold look. "I told you before that you shouldn't call me Minnie."

"Tell me what's on your mind, then."

She started to scratch her cat behind his ear. "Ron's blaming Crookshanks for going after Scrabbers and even killing him."

Severus scowled. "A rat's a rat, and a cat's a cat. You can't stop either from going after their instincts. And, moreover, a cat's more pleasant to live with." Hermione smiled at his remark, and she didn't mind as he too started to massage Crookshanks who started to purr from all the attention he received.

* * *

Neville paged through every textbook in his bag, emptied it numerous times and read every parchment through for the fifth time.

"Damn it," he swore furiously. He could never remember the passwords to get into the Gryffindor common room, and had thus written them down. Unfortunately he'd lost the paper and now stood in front of the Fat Lady who refused to let him in.

"You know me," he wailed, after another failed search.

The Fat Lady shot him a glance, her eyebrows raised to the top of her head. "Do I really?" she sang, imitating an opera singer.

Neville looked around; hoping someone from Gryffindor would come and let him in, or at least tell him the password. To his utmost luck he noticed Harry coming up a staircase. He sighed in relief.

"Forgot the password, Neville?" Harry asked as if it was the most common thing happening throughout the year. "Hippogriff," he said to the portrait which moodily flung open. Neville thanked him, collecting his things together.

"I wrote it down," he told Harry. "I'm sure of it, and I'm certain I placed it in my bag, but I just couldn't find it."

Harry patted his back. "Don't matters now, does it?" They both climbed the stairs to the dormitories.

"Guess not," Neville said, sighing in relief again.

Upon their entrance they found half the boys already asleep, and soon later they joined them.

* * *

_"And the Quidditch Cup goes to Gryffindor!" Dumbledore said proudly, handing it over to Ron. On his cloak it had the Head Boy badge, and in his other hand was the House Cup._

_"Smile!" a photographer from the Daily Prophet instructed, photographing him numerous times._

_Rita Skeeter stepped forwards. "How do you feel about this triumph, Mr. Weasley?" she asked._

_"I'm speechless," the freckled boy said, grinning broadly. He posed for the photographer. _

_"RON!" the girls in the Great Hall screamed in admiration. "RON!"_

_Hermione stepped up next to him. "Oh Ron!" she cried. "I'm sorry that Crookshanks ate Scrabbers! I'll have him executed immediately!"_

_"No worries," Ron grinned. "It can wait some time; he can rot in Azkaban until then!"_

_Two aurors came up and took the struggling cat from Hermione's arms. Then, once they disappeared, it started raining Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, and Chocolate Frogs, along with various other sweets and Butter Beer started streaming along the floor._

_The light from the camera blinded Ron for a moment, and then everything went dark_.

"Yummy," he muttered, drooling onto his pillow. He yawned, gradually opening his eyes. Sitting up in the bed he stretched. "Man… it was all a dream?"

His head moved sideways and he was ready to swing his legs out of bed. He was busting to pee. Then he realized someone stood in front of him. His eyes grew wide and his lips started quivering. The person disappeared a moment later, and Ron finally managed to scream, "_BLACK!_" At the same time he felt his pyjama bottoms getting unusually wet...

* * *

Minerva paced back and forth. Severus threw her a hateful look.

"Do you have to do that?" he snarled. He and all the other professors were in the headmaster's office.

Minerva replied with a murderous glance. "Black attempted to harm my house _again_."

"I wonder why," Severus muttered. "With Potter being there it is a _real_ mystery."

"Severus, Minerva," Albus calmed them down. He was wearing a purple, glittery bathrobe over his blue pyjamas which had a series of clouds on them. He sat at his desk, his elbows leaning on the table top and his fingers spread apart, the tips against each other.

"We should think about how he even got into the dorm," Flitwick piped up. "Last time he tore the Fat Lady apart because she refused to let him in. We should ask her why she let him in this time."

Said lady appeared in one of the old headmasters' portraits.

"He knew the password," she sniffed. "Read it off a piece of parchment. What else was I to do but to let him in?"

Severus snorted. Only one boy could have written the password down.

* * *

Hermione stormed into Severus's quarters. She thrust the door open and smashed it shut again. Severus, who had expected it, didn't jump. He sat calmly on his sofa reading.

"What the hell?" she screamed at him. "Is it some sort of punishment? McGonnagal already deducted almost half our points and Neville suffered enough from the Howler his grandmother send him!"

"It's for your safety," he replied, continuing to read his book. There was only one reason why she should be so angry. After what had happened the night before with Black he'd ordered the house elves to move all her stuff into her bedroom in his quarters. He didn't deem it safe enough for her to stay in her dorm in Gryffindor Tower, not with two attacks by Sirius Black and Potter still healthily sleeping there.

She stomped her foot and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "It's not your decision where I sleep," she yelled. "It's none of your damn business!"

He looked up. "It is my damn business when the place you choose to sleep at is dangerous."

"How the fuck is the dorm dangerous?" she demanded.

He continued looking at her, calmly. "Black attacked the tower it is in twice now, who says he won't a third time? As long as Potter is still breathing and staying there you _will_ stay here."

"So if Harry was harmed by Black I could go back?" she screeched outraged. "What's that for bullshit?"

He ignored her swearing. "You are my wife no matter what, and Potter is Black's target. It's risky staying near him and I will not have my wife in such an unsafe position."

She poked her tongue out at him and then retreated to her room, sulking.


	9. 14 03

**Love by the Law**

It wasn't without reason that no one seemed to particularly like Care of Magical Creatures. Hagrid had taken it over since Professor Kettleburn had resigned, and in his first lesson he'd presented the Gryffindor and Slytherin third year hippogriffs. After Draco Malfoy had been bit by one he'd sworn that his father would do something about it. Since then Hagrid hadn't done much except let them feed flobberworms which died off weekly. He was scared that the ministry would do something to the hippogriffs and his other beloved creatures.

Thus it was no real surprise to anyone when the groundskeeper received a letter requiring him and Buckbeak to go to a hearing. The Slytherins were happy, the Gryffindors were mad.

At the same time, no one had time to sulk much. Final exams were coming their way and teachers overloaded them with extreme amounts of homework. Even Hermione had slight troubles keeping up.

Some days later, when Hagrid told Hermione that he had lost and that Buckbeak was going to be executed, she didn't have the time to give him her full ear and only nodded, muttering some half-hearted condolences while working on deciphering a sentence written in runes.

A slight relax was the final Quidditch game, Gryffindor vs. Slytherin. Most students had token the afternoon off to unwind from constant studying and support their team. It was no surprise that Slytherin took the dumbest tactic of playing foul, giving Gryffindor the chance for an early lead. All the same it didn't take Harry too long to catch the snitch right from under Malfoy's nose. Hardly and hour into the game it was already finished, and for the first time in years Gryffindor had won the Quidditch Cup.

Merriment was short-lived. Exams started the following week and it was no ice cream eating. For the first time Hermione appreciated Severus's decision to move her out of the dorm. There everything would be struck by the pandemic of nervousness and distraught; it'd distract her from learning. In Severus's quarters it was exactly the opposite, calm as the sea on a sunny, windless day, together with the peacefulness of a battlefield after the last bullet had dropped.

Once the final exam, DADA, had token place, the third years could finally relax, and Hermione had even talked Severus into letting her back into the girls' dorm. Happy about how her assessments had gone and about her triumph over Severus, she, Ron and Harry went to visit Hagrid. Seeing him all depressed made her remember the news about Buckbeak.

"Today's the day," the half-giant said. "Better you all go back to the castle, don't want ya getting in trouble for nothing…"

Hermione insisted on making him a tea first. As she grabbed one of the massive tea cups, she shrieked horrified and let it fall. It broke into three big pieces.

"What now?" Ronald asked gloomily. Although not too happy about having had to spent time with hippogriffs, he didn't think they should ever be executed for such a trivial matter as scratching a student.

A rat escaped from the ruins of the cup.

"Scrabbers!" the red head exclaimed as it ran towards him. He bent down and picked it up.

Hermione stared at him.

Harry, too, was shocked.

Hagrid was oblivious to what had happened.

"I – I'm sorry, Hermione," Ron stammered, feeding Scrabbers to his breast pocket. His face was magenta. He was embarrassed about it all.

"No!" Hagrid wailed, seeing the Minister of Magic, Dumbledore and an executioner approach his hut. Then he remembered Harry, Ron and Hermione. "Out," he ordered, disorientated. He rushed to the back door and held it open for them. They disappeared. Moments later there was a knock on the front door.

Outside Ron saw Buckbeak.

"Let's take him," he said.

"No!" Hermione said decisively. "We can't, they'll see it from inside!"

Harry agreed. He pulled Ron forward.

The trio ran past Hagrid's hut and back to the school entrance. The sun was about to set.

"Good riddance, eh?" Draco said, appearing out of nowhere.

Hermione looked at him. "How can you say something like that?" she asked. In the distance all four could hear the executioner bringing down his axe. Shocked from the noise tears started rolling freely down her face.

"Cry baby!" Draco laughed. "Cry bab-"

"Hermione!" Ron gasped, surprised. He stared at her, standing inches away from Draco, her palm still raised.

"Never expected that, did you, Malfoy?" Harry grinned. Neither had he though it likely that Hermione would slap Malfoy, but what had to be done had to be done.

"You're gonna run to Daddy now and get me beheaded?" she hissed mockingly. Striding away with her chin held high she left the speechless Malfoy. Harry and Ron followed.

"Scrabbers!" Ron exclaimed, trying to keep his rat under control. They had just reached the main entrance as the animal finally managed to escape. Without thinking Ronald took off after it, and Harry followed him. Hermione, furiously, went too. She wanted to get back into the castle, yet she didn't wanted Harry to be alone in the dark with Black still around either.

"What the hell, guys?" she hissed, catching up with the boys who had meanwhile grabbed the squealing Scrabbers. "What if Black comes?"

Harry looked up. "You don't believe that yourself, do you?"

Hermione's deafening scream was proof enough. A shadowy creature had jumped over her head without warning, and it came to a skidded halt metres away.

"Fuck!" Ron exclaimed, stepping away. The furry thing started again and, instead of aiming for Harry, it came straight towards Ron who, foolishly, decided to try and outrun the creature. He stumbled over a plant and ended up face down on the ground.

Harry and Hermione were frozen with shock, seeing Ron helplessly stumble. The creature bit into his leg. He screamed thoroughly as he was dragged away.

"What the…" Harry said stunned, not sure whether he should believe what he'd just seen or not. To disprove it his hand reached out to his left, but Ron wasn't there any longer.

"Harry," Hermione said flatly. "I think… Sirius Black just kidnapped Ron…"

Harry swallowed. "Sirius Black… my father's best friend… my godfather… is a dog?"

"Maybe he trained the dog to fetch you, Harry, but instead he got Ron," Hermione suggested.

"Since when is a dog so strong?" Harry objected, totally forgetting that they were in the wizarding world.

"Yeah…" Hermione agreed.

Instantaneously, it dawned to them what happened.

"_Fuck_," Harry shouted, looking at Hermione. "That dog grabbed Ron! We gotta go and save him!"

They both took off in the direction the dog had run. They could still hear Ron's painful yelping from far away. It motivated them to run faster.

"Bollocks!" Hermione exclaimed, coming to skidding halt. She slid on the wet grass and fell backwards, staring at the Whomping Willow in front of her. Harry, next to her, darted forward not knowing what the Whomping Willow does. A second later one of her branches hit him in the stomach and flung him backwards. He landed a metre away from her.

"What…?" he croaked, taken aback. His head spun in several directions. He almost threw up.

Hermione shot him a worried look, but didn't waste time asking how he was. "The Whomping Willow," she said, as if it was self-explanatory. "She launches at any moving thing getting anywhere near it. That's how your Nimbus got shattered."

"Aha." Harry was disorientated. Hermione helped him up. "How do we get past her?" He pointed at a hole in the ground. "That beastly thing probably dragged him down there."

"Maybe we should get a professor?" Hermione suggested. The whole situation made her lack in enthusiasm.

Harry shook his head decisively. "That thing's got Ron and he is probably with Black now. We can't waste time looking for a teacher."

Without apparent reason Hermione started to chuckle. "You know," she said, "somehow it's always a Weasley getting in trouble… our first year Ron got knocked out by the chess figure, last year Ginny almost died in the Chambers and now Ron is held hostage or something by Sirius Black, the most wanted man in the Wizarding Community."

"Let alone Fred and George who always pull stunts to get detentions," Harry laughed, himself finding it quite funny now. Then both grew serious. "How will we get in?" he asked.

Hermione rested her head on her shoulder, thoughtfully. "If we knew where it ended, there'd probably be another entrance we could look for. But we don't…"

"How far do you think the branches can reach?" Harry asked, burrowing his eyebrows.

She shrugged. "Maybe ten metres, maybe fifteen. It's hard to say."How a

Harry grew worried. "We gotta do something, and fast!" he said. To their both surprise a ginger fur ball charged out of the bushes and towards the tree. It skilfully dodged the branches reaching out, and came to a halt at the tree trunk. A moment later the branches froze.

"Crooksshanks," Hermione smiled, happy. She and Harry started to carefully walk forward. They didn't know when the tree would abruptly start to lash out again.

At long last they reached the hole.

"Lady's first," Harry smiled grimly.

* * *

They crawled through a dark tunnel for quite some time, only with their wands as light, and then emerged into an even darker room. Trying to figure out where they were they moved about. There was a cobweb covered fireplace, a bookshelf with layer upon layer of dust and dirt, and some armchairs with white fabric thrown over them.

Hermione moved to a barricaded window and squinted her eyes as she looked through a gap between the wooden planks plastered across it.

"Harry!" she hissed, motioning the boy who was inspecting the books to come over. "I think we know where we are…" She stepped away and let Harry take a look.

"Hogsmeade," he whispered. "So we're in the Shrieking Shack?"

Hermione turned her attention to the floor. If Ron and the dog had come through here, then there had to be drag marks there to signal where they had gone.

"Upstairs!" she whispered. She was afraid to talk loud in case Sirius Black was somewhere near. Harry stepped beside her. He inspected the stairs.

"I'm an expert in creaking stairs," he said dryly. "Don't step on the third one and be careful with the fifth one…"

"You want to go first?" she said quietly. He did and she followed him, taking care to miss the same steps he missed.

"How come you're an expert?" she asked, wanting to start a conversation. She couldn't get it out of her head that somewhere near by the mass murderer Sirius Black hid. If Severus found out about this and she came out alive, he'd kill her.

Wait, what–? What was she saying? _He'd kill her_. Was she suggesting to herself that she went after what he says? He might be her husband, but that didn't mean that she didn't have her own mind and couldn't make her own decisions. So what if she went in search of a dangerous criminal? Sure, she might get killed, but that was the thrill, right?

Now she understood, why Harry, continuously, tried to get himself killed, almost as if on purpose! The adrenaline rush was addictive. The ecstasy buzz coming from it made her feel as if she was high on drugs, just without the actual dope. She started to enjoy this very much.

"… and then I always have to be careful which steps to take," Harry concluded his explanation, and she noticed she hadn't listened to a single word. They reached the top of the staircase.

Leaning her wand, with its tip shining out light, forward, Hermione saw the drag marks in the dust go into the first room. She and Harry shut up as she signalled towards the open door.

Silent whimpering coming from Ron was heard, and they knew they were right.

On soft footsteps the two come within reach of the open door. They saw Ron lying on a mattress, his right leg bent in a strange position. His face was marked with old tears, and he had his eyes closed.

Cautiously Harry and Hermione entered the room, and to their terror Ron's eyes momentarily thrust open, his pupils small as can be, surrounded by masses of blood shot white. The two jumped back in horror.

"Black," their friend croaked, looking to the right.

Harry and Hermione's head turned in his direction. There was the dog, sitting obediently on the floor. They relaxed visibly and stepped to Ron. Hermione started to examine Ron's leg, who continued to warn them.

"Seriously Ron, he isn't here," Harry laughed. To prove him wrong Harry turned back to the dog.

A tall man with dark hair falling into his scrawny face smiled back.

"H-H-Hermione!" Harry screeched, nearly speechless.

"What?" she asked annoyed. She too turned. She too screeched on seeing none other but Sirius Black.

He raised his arms as if caught by the muggle police. "I'm no harm," he said calmly.

Harry raised his wand. "Then why did you hurt Ron?" he demanded. He totally forgot that the man in front of him had betrayed his parents, killed a dozen innocent muggles and was now out to get him. All he could think about was Ron lying beside him, in pain.

Sirius Black shrugged. "Was a mistake. Am sorry about it."

Hermione too raised her wand. "You're trying to kill Harry," she stated, her voice quivering with fear.

The escaped prisoner laughed eccentrically. "_Kill _him? He's the son of my best friend!" Black squealed. "I'd rather hug him!" He held his arms wide open, ready to welcome Harry.

Perplexed Harry slowly lowered his wand.

"…uh…"

"DON'T!" came Remus Lupin's voice out of nowhere. No one had heard him running up the stairs.

He appeared in the door frame, holding on to it as not to skid. "Don't…"

"Remus," Sirius said, mildly surprised.

"Professor Lupin…" Hermione breathed, lowering her wand too.

Ron moaned in pain. All attention focused on him. Remus knelt down beside him.

"I'm not very good with healing spells," he said, scratching his head. "So I won't even attempt it."

Sirius cleared his throat. Everyone looked at him. "The reason why I even came here," he said. "Your rat…"

"Scrabbers?" Ron whined. "What has Scrabbers to do with this?"

Lupin looked at his bulging chest pocket where the rat was. Then he looked up at Sirius. "I know you're innocent," he said calmly. "I saw him on the Marauder's Map."

Sirius smiled broadly, and a second later Lupin was captured in a tight hug.

Hermione exchanged looks with her best friends. "Erm… what is it with Scrabbers?"

Lupin pulled out of the hug. "Scrabbers is –"

"A stupid rat," came a sneering voice from the door frame.


	10. 14 04

**Love by the Law**

_A/N: After various uploading/saving/ general laptop problems, here is the new chapter._

All present people turned around.

"Severus!" Hermione gasped.

"Snape," Sirius snorted. "How's it been in the free world?"

Severus nodded, quirking. "Quite good, actually. Only, sadly for you, that you'll never have it again." He raised his wand.

"NO!" Harry exclaimed. He raised his wand against his teacher. Hermione, grudgingly, did the same.

Severus burrowed his eyebrows. He decided he wasn't going to be stopped by teens. He opened his mouth to speak.

"_STUPOR!_" three voices said. Three beams of red light hit the target, Severus Snape. He flew backwards and hit the wall behind him, collapsing against it. Looking around, Hermione saw that Lupin too had his wand raised.

"How did he even get in here?" Sirius panted, still pale.

Harry bent down and grabbed something off the floor. "Invisibility cloak," he said.

Remus grunted. "I left it at the Whomping Willow…"

Sirius grinned, taking and admiring it. "Wow. Can't believe it still exists!"

"Guys…?" Ron croaked. "Scrabbers… he's trying to get away… what do you want with my rat?"

Remus and Sirius whirled around to face him.

"Give him here," Black instructed, reaching out his hand.

Ron was reluctant.

"Do it," Lupin backed Black up. "Believe me."

He gave the struggling rat over.

The golden trio watched mesmerised as Lupin put a body binder on the rat for it to stop moving, then placing it on the ground.

"On three," Sirius grinned. He pulled his wand out and he and Remus pointed their wands at the miserable creature.

The teens had to shield their eyes as blinding light came out of nothing. A moment later it subdued. Looking back at Scrabbers, the rat wasn't there anymore. A man was.

"Hello, friend," Sirius smiled.

A plump, small man with a near bald head lay on the floor, wearing ripped trousers and a ripped shirt. He was covered in dirt, as if he hadn't washed in years. His eyes looked in all directions, insecurely, like a scared rat.

"Hello, Peter," Remus said. Although he'd expected this to happen, it still stunned him. After believing for twelve years that Peter Pettigrew was dead, murdered by his best friend Sirius Black, it was a bit of a shock.

Ron, on the mattress, fainted. Hermione felt like doing the same. Harry, next to her, just gaped. He didn't know how to react.

Sirius looked utmost happy. "This cleared any doubt?" he asked grinning broadly while kicking Peter Pettigrew, assumed dead for the last twelve years by the wizarding community.

Hermione pinched herself. "Is... this a dream...?" she managed to say.

Remus and Sirius both looked at her. "I hope not," they said in unison.

Harry continued to stare at Pettigrew. "So... _he_ betrayed my parents...?" He lazily pointed at the filthy man.

Black grinned. "Sharp as your mother," he said proudly.

"Shouldn't we bring him out here and to the ministry?" Hermione lamely suggested.

Remus agreed. Sirius, next to him, started grinning madly. "I'll be free," he muttered, as if just now realising. "I'll finally be free…"

Slowly everyone started packing up. Harry and Hermione helped Ron up, Remus went to see how Snape was and Sirius kicked Peter a final time before he magically lifted him up. One after another everyone went down the creaking staircase. They entered the room where the tunnel started, and Hermione and Harry took their wands into their hands and said "_Lumos_." With two glowing lights illuminating the surroundings, the seven people engulfed themselves into the semi-darkness.

Remus, levitating the unconscious Snape, was first, with Hermione next to him showing the way. Behind them was Sirius with Pettigrew and lastly there was Harry, who was helping Ron walk.

Most of the journey they spent in quietness. No one really knew what to say.

"Harry…" Sirius finally spoke. "You know…"

"Know what?" replied Harry softly.

Sirius cleared his throat, accidentally knocking Pettigrew against the ceiling. "You know that… in case you don't want to… erm, continue living with your relatives, you can…. Comeandlivewithmeforthesummer."

Harry looked at him. "Pardon?"

Sirius shrugged. "I mean, obviously, it's your choice where you want to spend your summer, and if you want to stay with your relatives, then obviously it's fine with me, but –"

Harry grinned broadly. "I'd love to do nothing more than that," he cut in. Sirius relaxed visibly.

"We're there!" Hermione exclaimed from the front.

A minute later everyone emerged from under the Whomping Willow, smiling at Crookshanks who was waiting at the trunk keeping the branches from lashing out. They all made their way towards Hogwarts.

"It's such a nice full moon tonight," Sirius stated, looking up at the night sky. A cloud was just passing over the bright round plate. All seven stood still for a moment to admire the moon.

"_Shit!_" Lupin's voice echoed moments later. Everyone turned to face him. Instead of seeing their friend and professor, Sirius, Hermione, Harry and Ron found a writhing man with hair sprouting from all over his body. The still unconscious Snape fell limply to the ground.

Sirius too swore, paling. Just as Remus' transformation finished he turned into his dog form. As the werewolf started to leap at the remaining people, Sirius jumped at his chest in an attempt to fight him off.

"Sirius!" Harry exclaimed, letting go off Ron who fell to the ground crying out in pain. A moment later he blacked out.

The black shaggy dog had been thrown across the grass where he lay still.

The werewolf ran away into the nearby bushes. Momentarily Sirius' leg started twitching and seconds later he followed Remus.

"Pettigrew!" Hermione instantaneously gasped. In the chaos no one had noticed that the traitor had transformed back into his rat-self and vanished, like Lupin.

"We gotta go after Lupin," Harry decided. He threw a glance at Ron and Snape, but Sirius and Remus were more important to him right now.

Together with Hermione he vanished where the dog and werewolf had gone. Once they scrambled through the thick bush, they stumbled over plants and almost ran into dozens of trees. The only thing leading their way was the faraway barking of Sirius and the occasional howling of Lupin.

"Where are we?" Hermione hissed, pulling at Harry's arm to make him stop. She looked around. Nothing was familiar to her.

He looked around, too. "No clue," he admitted warily. "_Duck!_" Harry pulled her down with him as he saw his godfather approaching, ready to jump. Behind them they heard howling.

Sirius, knowing Lupin was too much for him, fled into one direction, making sure Hermione and Harry were always in front of him. Neither of the teens really knew where they were going, but soon later they exited the forest and appeared at the lake.

Hermione looked at Harry. "I know the way back to the Whomping Willow from here, should I go and check on Ron and Severus?"

Harry nodded. "Do that," he said.

She disappeared from their sight.

* * *

_"Hermione, what I'm about to do will make me seem like I'm a cold-hearted bat who doesn't care about anyone except me. Please understand, however, that I'm doing this to keep up my reputation."_

_She chuckled. "Maybe you shouldn't have chosen a reputation that is damaged this easily."_

_He frowned. "Take this serious, I beg you._

_"Once the Minster and Dumbledore come here I will tell them that I caught Black and saved you from him, and then you and Potter will protest. However, I'll say that he brainwashed you. Poppy will most certainly shoo me and Fudge out after that. Dumbledore is going to stay and once she vanished in her office, he'll tell you to use your timeturner to go back in time and save Black from getting the Dementors' kiss."_

_She looked at him, surprised._

_He chuckled. "I'm not as stupid as you might think I am," he smirked._

_Hermione nodded, and took his hand. She held it, deep in thought, until the infirmary ward door sprung open and Fudge and Professor Dumbledore came in. Severus, in reply, shot up and strode towards them._

_"Why, here is the man of the day!" Fudge grinned, shaking Severus' hand. "Professor Snape, the man who caught Sirius Black!"_

Harry touched her arm. He slightly shook Hermione.

"Huh?" she said, disorientated, as he pulled her from her thoughts.

"Lupin just went in," Harry reported. He burrowed his brows. "Maybe we should get the invisibility cloak he left behind…"

Just like Severus had told Hermione earlier, Dumbledore had suggested they go back in time. After successfully freeing Buckbeak from his doom and watching the executioner, in a rage, behead a pumpkin upon finding that the hippogriff had disappeared, Harry and Hermione had set up camp just meters away from the Whomping Willow behind some bushes.

She shook her head. "Severus needs it later, remember? And anyways, we can't risk anyone seeing us here, especially with Buckbeat."

He nodded. After a moment, he thoughtfully said, "Hermione."

"Yes?" she whispered, stroking Buckbeak's face.

"Would you… would you ever consider divorcing Snape?" he asked, looking away.

She shrugged. "Probably. I mean, it's only a temporary marriage. I can't really see myself falling in love with him, let alone have his child." She shuddered. "Once I'm of age and I found someone I want to marry, then yes, I'll divorce him."

He nodded. "You know… that I'll always be there for you, right?"

She smiled at him before her eyes went back to the Whomping Willow. It was almost an hour until something happened.

Amazed the two of them saw Lupin transform and Sirius too. They saw Pettigrew slip away, watched as Ron blacked out and Severus too hit the ground. They observed themselves running off into the bushes not to far away from them.

"We need to follow them," Harry hissed. He sounded excited.

Hermione energetically shook her head. "We can't, the risk's too big."

"I need to," he insisted. "I just have this feeling… that this is what I have to do!"

He got up from the ground and ran off.

"_Harry!_" Hermione screeched, hurriedly making sure Buckbeak was tied to a tree before setting off after Harry. In the darkness it was hard seeing where he went, but she just about managed. Although she constantly stumbled she soon caught up to him. Looking around she saw they were near the lake.

Harry sprinted the last fifty meters to the shore. On the opposite shore, two figures were on the ground with a black curtain surrounding them. Weak silver rays come from them.

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" Harry shouted, skipping to halt and raising his wand.

Hermione yelped, coming to a stop right behind him. A magnificent silver figure emerged from the tip of Harry's wand. It formed itself into a respectful stag. On light foots it galloped over the water, and upon contact the Dementors vanished into all directions.

"That was... amazing," Hermione whispered.

Harry looked at her. "Let's get Buckbeak and free Sirius. We haven't very long left."

She nodded.

The darkness had grown, and they found it almost impossible to find their way back to the hippogriff. After getting lost and walking in circles, they finally arrived back at the Whomping Willow. Buckbeak was impatiently looking for something edible on the floor with his beak.

Harry tied him loose and then he helped Hermione get on before he too climbed on the wonderful animal. Silently he slightly pushed his feet into Buckbeak's sides. Swiftly the hippogriff left the ground.

"Flitwick's office," Hermione reminded Harry. She was leaning forward; heights were not her strength and especially on a hippogriff.

While Hermione restrained herself from looking around, Harry looked up at the moon and down at the forest, at numerous dark figures walking across the grounds to the lake. Presumably it was Snape who had just woken up.

They arrived at the window Dumbledore had named them. Harry leant over to knock on it once getting Buckbeak to hover in front of it. Sure enough, inside was Sirius Black, his godfather. Upon the knocking noise he looked up, and seeing Harry he grinned broadly. Harry signalled him to stay back as he pulled his wand out. A coloured ray shot out and the glass smashed. Hermione shrieked in surprise and held tightly on to Buckbeak. Seconds later Sirius had climbed out and onto the hippogriff. They were all squashed together as Buckbeak took off again, but no one cared too much.

The atronomy tower came into sight instants later. Buckbeak landed softly on it. Harry slipped off and helped Hermione down.

"Thank you," Sirius grinned. "And there I was thinking it was all over."

"Don't thank me," Harry argued. "Thank Hermione. If it wasn't for her being so smart she'd never been allowed to take all possible subjects, and the result would have been that she'd never gotten the timeturner which brought us back to save you."

"You really must be the brightest wicth of your age, Hermione," Sirius said impressed. "But I'd better get going before they capture me again, eh?"

"Bye-bye!" Hermione and Harry both yelled in unity waving to Sirius Black fly away towards the full moon. They saw his figure raise a hand, waving. After a moment of watching they noticed they only had a couple of minutes left before they needed to be back at the infirmary.

Neither expected much to happen in the last week before the holidays.

* * *

"You happy?" Hermione asked. She came through her bedroom door to say goodbye to Severus before she went off home.

Severus looked up from his book. "Should I be?"

"Professor Lupin resigned." She sat down next to him.

His lips curled into a smile. "Maybe now I'll get the position of DADA teacher." Then he got serious. "Did Weasley invite you to the Quidditch Championship which is held this summer?"

"No," she answered truthfully. She smiled cockily. "Why, you planning on taking me?"

He sniffed as if she'd offended him. "Indeed I was." To his utmost surprise she hugged him.

"Send me an owl, will you?" she whispered into his ear before she vanished back in her bedroom.

Summer really was here.


	11. 14 05

**Love by the Law**

Mr. Granger glanced at his daughter before looking back at the road. He sighed, driving off the highway. She was so young and innocent. She was his little girl.

One time, when she was seven, she'd hurt herself on the playground. Of course he'd been by her side instantly, already a tissue in his hand to wash off the blood from her knee. To his surprise she, his little Hermione, hadn't cried. Instead she'd looked up to him, and shrugged. Though it was obviously she was in pain, she hadn't showed it. Later when he'd bought her an ice cream, she gave him a smile, but the pain was still in her eyes.

Now she just stared ahead at the road. She didn't show the pain he knew she felt. Was it pain because she was married? Was it pain because she was away from her friends? He didn't know.

"Hermione," he started, uneasy.

She didn't reply.

She was swiftly growing up. Spending most of the year away from home, it was always a surprise to see her when she came home. Since Christmas she'd grown a lot, and her curls framed her face in a nice way. She was growing up too fast.

What had happened in the last three years of her school? She risked her life twice. She almost died because of some strange snake and its eyes. She hadn't even told them what happened this year.

Summer holidays. In the past, Hermione had always been negative about holidays. She wanted to go to school and learn throughout the six weeks, but of course that had been impossible. Instead she'd declared the living room her study and learned her new school books off by heart. Now it was just about the only time she spent with her parents. The only time they were there when she was growing up…

It broke Mr. Granger's heart. Three short years ago, life had been normal. Hermione had been ready to start secondary school halfway through the holidays. He and Mrs. Granger had been part of her life every day. Then, one day, an elderly lady comes along and starts going on about this other world. Hermione, curious as she is, has to find out more. She goes off to a school. She comes back home, and informs them she was almost killed. Next year, the same thing happened. Would she do it again? Four more years ahead of her; four more years of almost being killed? He sighed again. By the time she finished school she'd be out of the house. Nearly half of her present life would be with almost no memory of her parents.

He took the last turn, and then drove up into the driveway. Turning the motor off Hermione got out of the car. Mr. Granger sat there, watching her run up to the front door where Mrs. Granger was already pulling her into a tight embrace. He sighed.

* * *

Hermione was glas to see her parents again. Although they expected her to stay the full six weeks this year, she knew she wouldn't. Severus would buy tickets to the Quidditch Championship, so she'd leave soon. Perhaps in a fortnight. She didn't know.

When after a week still no owl came, she was sure Severus had forgotten, or simply couldn't be bothered. It disappointed her. Finally they started to get along so well and then he couldn't even send her a lousy owl.

* * *

Severus was glad that the summer holidays were finally there again. The busy, loud and tormenting school year was followed by six weeks of laziness, quietness and peacefulness. Without holidays, Severus would have quit teaching long ago.

Every morning, Severus got up late, catching up on a lot of sleep. After taking a shower and eating lunch, he'd sit at his desk. Hermione had asked him to write her and owl, but what should he write? Every day he wrote a new draft, and every day. another one ended up in the bin. It frustrated him. Finally they started to get along so well and he couldn't even write a lousy letter to her.

* * *

Mr. Granger sighed. They were sitting at the breakfast table and again Hermione was in a foul mood; again she didn't eat anything; again she didn't talk. Thinking of how she'd surprised both him and Mrs. Granger by never refusing to eat her vegetables, he smiled into his coffee.

A quiet tap at the window followed by a _shohoo! _ripped Hermione from her daydreams. Grinning broadly she sprung up from her chair and tore the window open. The barn owl flew in, stumbling onto the table and tearing Mr. Granger's newspaper in half. Excitedly Hermione almost ripped its leg off trying to get the letter while stuffing some bacon into the owl's face. Seeing Ron's untidy handwriting she slumped back into her chair and her face momentarily.

_Dear Mione,_

_Dad got tickets to the Quidditch Quarter Finals, and you and Harry are coming too! That's so cool, isn't it?_

_Anyways, how have your holidays been so far? Mine were pretty okay - Percy started working at the Ministry like Dad, and Charlie visited us last week for two days. The dragons' eggs cracked open so he had to get back quick as a lot of work was to be done, and later on in the holidays Bill will also come for a short time as he has business to do with Gringotts. But enough of my holidays - how were yours? Harry still hates living with his uncle and aunt, but who wouldn't? Haha._

_Well, see you soon and hope to hear from you even sooner._

_Ron._

After throwing the newspaper in the bin, Mr. Granger watched his daughter read the letter. Although it was from Ron, she didn't look happy but rather annoyed. Had they fallen out? Or had this to do with that Severus Snape? Hermione hadn't said anything about school just yet, unlike usual. Something must have happened during the year. However, Mr. Granger didn't want to push her into saying anything she wasn't comfortable with.

* * *

Hermione spend days not doing anything but lay on her bed, depressed. Every now and then an owl from Harry or Ron came, but none from Severus. Was she really so meaningless to him? Had it just been her imagination that he started to warm up towards her? She felt betrayed.

At long last, after nearly two whole weeks, the letter came. It lifted her mood immensely although it was only short. It showed that he did care.

_Dear Hermione,_

_I have talked with Arthur Weasley, and he'll be picking you up from your house on the third August. You'll spend the night at the Burrow and with the Weasleys you'll go to the portkey point. There you'll be meeting Mr. Diggory, his son and me._

_I hope your holidays have been fine so far._

_SS_


End file.
